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                        <title>The Express Tribune</title>
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			<title>Spreading tolerance: 'Bhatti's sacrifice not in vain'</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344594/spreading-tolerance-bhattis-sacrifice-not-in-vain</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344594/spreading-tolerance-bhattis-sacrifice-not-in-vain#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 02 Mar 12 17:04:01 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[mavra.bari]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
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				<![CDATA[Vigil in honour of slain minister vows to carry on working towards a tolerant Pakistan.]]>
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				<![CDATA[An intimate gathering of about a hundred assembled for a candlelight vigil near Super Market in F-6 to mark Shahbaz Bhatti's assassination a year ago.

While some were disheartened by the relatively low turnout, Haris Khaleeq pointed out that it's not that individuals are not against brutal assassinations of those who speak against repression, but that few people have the courage to participate in such demonstrations. All the participants chanted slogans to show their unfaltering support for combating intolerance.

Christian representative Basharat Masih said, "We shouldn't be disheartened by small numbers and should still strive to break the culture of silence and show our strength in character and resolve.”

In addition to Bhatti, demonstrators remembered others who were killed while trying to mold a more liberal Pakistan, including Benazir Bhutto and Salman Taseer. The latter’s son, Shehryar Taseer, surprised participants with his unexpected presence at the vigil and stressed on the importance of tolerance in a short address.

Naeem Mirza commented, "Sometimes great men are forgotten in history, but the values of these men, equality, liberalism and justice, will live on for generations to come and will inspire others to speak."

Jameel Azhar Bhatti mentioned the recent sectarian killing of 16 bus passengers in Kohistan who were checked for identification before being shot, an incident that reiterates the animosity shown towards various groups in Pakistan.

PPP member Captain Wasif went on to elevate unity within Pakistan, saying “Shahbaz Bhatti was not a Hindu, a Muslim or a Christian. He was a human being, and he was a Pakistani. Following this address, rights activist Tahira Abdullah led chants calling for the arrest of Bhatti’s killers.

Father Rehmat Hakim of Our Lady of Fatima Church, F-8/4, compared the bravery of Taseer and Bhatti with Faiz Ahmed Faiz. They “were well aware of the repercussions of speaking against the blasphemy laws, which makes their actions even nobler.”

He further commented, "We need to get out the 'minority-majority rut. I never think of myself as a minority, but as a citizen who has rights and responsibilities, and as long as one fulfills their responsibilities, they are entitled to their rights".

Tariq Khoso, 23, an accounting student, commented to The Express Tribune, "We need to break out of this cage of intolerance and practice an ideology of humanism, and the only way to achieve that is through literacy and education".

The event ended with Tahira Abdullah extending an open invitation for Shahbaz Bhatti's first death anniversary at 2 pm on March 6 at the Convention Centre.

The vigil was organized by civil society members, Insani Huqooq Ittehad members, Workers Party Pakistan, Labour Party, Awami Party, Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party and the National Students Federation.]]>
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			<title>Three arrests and releases later, Bhatti’s probe trail goes cold</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344291/three-arrests-and-releases-later-bhatti%e2%80%99s-probe-trail-goes-cold</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344291/three-arrests-and-releases-later-bhatti%e2%80%99s-probe-trail-goes-cold#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 02 Mar 12 05:08:25 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[umer.nangiana]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[On the first anniversary of former minorities’ affairs minister’s murder, the investigators are back to square...]]>
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				<![CDATA[“No solid leads could be found to direct the investigations the right way,” said a police official who has been closely associated with the investigation of the case. “The details have been murky since the beginning,” he divulged, on condition of anonymity.


In a year since the assassination, three suspects have been arrested and subsequently released due to lack of evidence.

Pastor’s suspicions

The false lead, now cold, started with a phone call from an alim-turned-pastor Hafiz Nazar. Nazar called a minorities’ lawmaker from a provincial assembly, and claimed he knew the people behind Bhatti’s assassination.

The pastor was arrested by Karachi police in March last year, and handed over to Islamabad police as a possible suspect. During interrogation, he named two businessmen from Faisalabad, Ziaur Rehman and Malik Abid, as possible suspects.

“At that time, the investigators were probably working to find real clues and Nazar distracted them,” said the police official privy to the investigations. Nazar could not substantially prove the two businessmen’s involvement though, the police official said.

“He had only speculated that the two men could have property disputes with Bhatti as they belonged to his native town,” he added.

The pastor was questioned by the investigators multiple times before being booked. But the court released him on the first hearing for lack of evidence.

Lack of evidence

After almost a year-long hunt, the first suspect, Rehman, was arrested by the Interpol and local police authorities from Dubai on the request of Islamabad police in early February 2012.

A week later, the second suspect, Abid, was arrested by the capital police from Lahore airport on his arrival from Dubai.

Both Rehman and Abid were suspected of involvement in Bhatti’s murder but the suspicions were not backed by strong evidence. Islamabad police, therefore, asked the court to discharge Abid a week after his arrest.

Rehman was also set free by Dubai authorities after he proved his innocence before them. He provided them evidence that he was not present in Pakistan when Bhatti was murdered. He said he had no enmity with Bhatti and was being falsely accused in the case. Dubai police and Interpol released him, but retained his passport.

“The two men were never the right men to go after,” said the official. “But the police had no option. There were no real clues.”

The ‘trusted’ driver

The Islamabad police, therefore, is as clueless at present, as it was a year ago.

“There are scattered clues that need to be put together for a fresh start,” said the police official.

Bhatti’s driver, for instance, survived the attack and needed to be interrogated but the minister’s family denied access to him saying he was ‘the most trusted man’ of the family.

There were several discrepancies in his statements to the police though, the official said.

“I still believe the driver knows much more than he told us,” he added. “He can be a starting point if you ask me to restart investigations.” Bhatti’s car was sprayed with bullets. There is no way the driver could have been spared by simply, as he told the police, ducking under.

“The driver had seen them. Why did the assailants not kill him to eliminate evidence against them?” the official asked.

“Okay, let’s presume they made a mistake, even then the driver is important for the investigators,” he said, adding that the police should be given access to the driver.

‘Inside’ job

Another police official, who was closely involved in the investigations, said that the assailants were aware of Bhatti’s routine.

They knew Bhatti was using his office as his residence only as a cover, and was in fact still going back to his mother’s house at night, he said. “The killers knew this, and planned the ambush accordingly,” he said, adding that someone from the ‘inside’ was in contact with the killers.

What about the pamphlets scattered at the crime scene that claimed it was a blasphemy-related murder? It could be a distraction, he replied. The police have no solid clues either way.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 2nd, 2012.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz’s murder widened religious rift, says brother</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344292/exclusive-interview-shahbaz%e2%80%99s-murder-widened-religious-rift-says-brother</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344292/exclusive-interview-shahbaz%e2%80%99s-murder-widened-religious-rift-says-brother#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 02 Mar 12 05:04:56 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[zahid.gishkori]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Fear, communal and personal, marks the anniversary of the assassination of Pakistan’s first Christian Cabinet...]]>
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				<![CDATA[The distance between the Muslim and Christian communities in Pakistan has been widening after the murder of former minorities’ affairs minster Shahbaz Bhatti and former governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer, said the slain minister’s elder brother, and advisor to the prime minister on national harmony, Dr Paul Bhatti.


Both men were killed purportedly for their criticism of the country’s controversial blasphemy laws.

The resentment of the Christian community appears to be mounting with every passing day since Shahbaz’s death, Paul said in an exclusive interview with The Express Tribune.

“Some families of our community feel insecure after the conviction of Aasia Bibi,” he added, referring to the Christian woman facing death penalty for allegedly committing blasphemy.

Taseer had lent support to Aasia, and asked the president to pardon her.

Personal fear

For Paul, the fear is not just communal though.

“My mother has been advising all her children to shift abroad after Shahbaz’s assassination,” Paul said.

“One of my brothers – Peter – is now living permanently in Canada for this very reason,” he said.

Peter is working to promote religious harmony, and raise awareness about the plight of minorities, especially in developing countries, he added.

As for the family in Pakistan, it still lives in fear, awaiting justice for Shahbaz’s murder. Paul expressed dissatisfaction over the pace of investigations in his brother’s assassination.

“The slow pace in investigations is an embarrassment,” he said.

“The investigators have spoiled my brother’s case and pushed it into a blind alley by changing their stance in every report they submitted to the interior ministry,” he added.

The elder Bhatti is not optimistic about any development in the investigation process in the near future either.

But he does believe that a joint investigation team is more effective than a judicial commission.

Way forward

He has not given up hope though.

On the eve of the first anniversary of his brother’s assassination, Paul said his message is to promote peace and interfaith harmony.

“We stand united for peaceful Pakistan,” he said, adding that there was an urgent need to call representatives of all religions in Pakistan on a single platform and discuss issues which relate directly to laws of various beliefs.

“We can reach a consensus by following Quaid-e-Azam’s ideology about religions,” he said.

On his brother’s efforts for revision of blasphemy laws, that ultimately cost him his life, Paul said: “It’s a sensitive issue and should be carefully handled by the parliament. Politicians and clerics will have to arrive at a consensus on revision of such laws.”

Shahbaz’s legacy

To commemorate his brother’s struggle, the government is establishing a Shahbaz Bhatti University in Islamabad, Paul revealed.

“It will be a pioneering educational institution that will teach national harmony to its students,” he said. The project will cost over one billion rupees and will be funded by the United States through Shahbaz Memorial Trust, he added.

Meanwhile, the Christian community will host an international conference on national harmony in Islamabad next month.

Representatives of various religions, including the Imam-e-Kaaba and the Archbishop of Canterbury will be invited to this government sponsored conference, he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 2nd, 2012.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti: was he a martyr?</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344048/shahbaz-bhatti-was-he-a-martyr</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/344048/shahbaz-bhatti-was-he-a-martyr#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 01 Mar 12 18:19:48 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[yaqoob.khan.bangash]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[How could Shahbaz Bhatti be a martyr in a country where he was merely a ‘minority’?]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[Today is the first death anniversary of Shahbaz Bhatti, the ill-fated federal minister for minorities, who was gunned down by terrorists because he was a Christian and against the much-abused blasphemy law.

Aside from the blasphemy law issue, I hope to understand the death of Shahbaz Bhatti in the wider Pakistani context. Recently, I have been reading the debates of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on the Objectives Resolution of March 1949, and the heated debate over this Resolution raised several questions — many of which remain even now.

When Shahbaz was gunned down many quickly called him a ‘shaheed’— a martyr. But who was he a martyr for? Certainly, the Christians considered him a martyr, since he was killed because of his faith. But was he also a martyr for the country? Surely, since he died in the service of the country, he should be considered a martyr for the country. However, martyrs can only be created for causes they are fully a part of — there are no partially-involved martyrs. So, was Shahbaz really a full citizen of this country and a martyr?

Pakistan was conceived as a separate homeland for the Muslims of South Asia. Where Jinnah wanted to safeguard the interests of the Muslims, he was clear that he wanted to create a ‘homeland’ for them — not an Islamic state. The conflux of these two concepts is the root cause of the existential crisis in Pakistan. How could Jinnah escape the perceived threat of the hegemony of one religious community and create that same domination over other communities when a separate country is carved out? Would it not be insincere for Jinnah to escape ‘Hindu Raj’ in India but impose ‘Muslim Raj’ on non-Muslims in Pakistan? Jinnah wanted to create a country where there would be no such threats to the development of a Muslim community, but also to ‘any’ other community, as well. That is why in his famed August 11, 1947 speech to the Constituent Assembly, Jinnah made citizenship the basis of the country. In a nutshell, it did not matter what your religious, ethnic, or social background was, once you were a Pakistani that would be your primary identity, and all your rights and privileges would emanate from that basic citizenship.

Then came the Objectives Resolution in March 1949, which radically redefined Pakistan. Gone was the Pakistan based on citizenship, and a new Pakistan came into being with a ‘majority community’ and ‘minorities’. The relationship between the majority and minorities was not equal, but was based on a ‘protector’ and ‘protected’ basis. The Hindus, Christians, Sikhs and others who remained in Pakistan were simply told that Pakistan is for the Muslims, but that they will be tolerated. So in one week — between March 7 and 12, 1949 — about 20 per cent of Pakistan became ‘minorities’ from ‘citizens’. Their inherent right of being in Pakistan with full rights and privileges as citizens was taken away, and they were ‘granted’ (in an apparent show of magnanimity) a ‘protected’ and ‘minority’ status. This change of status was not lost on the non-Muslim members of the Assembly and Siris Chandra Chattopadhyaya, who was a member of the Pakistan National Congress Party lamented: ‘We are not going to leave East Bengal. It is our homeland. I claim that East Bengal and East Pakistan belongs to me as well as to any Mussalman and it will be my duty to make Pakistan a great, prosperous, and powerful state...because I call myself a Pakistani... I do not consider myself as a member of a minority community. I consider myself as one of the seven crore Pakistanis. Let me have the right to retain that privilege.’

The pleas above, however, fell on deaf ears, and the Objectives Resolution was passed without any amendment, and the non-Muslims in Pakistan were left with the legal term of ‘minority’, a sense of not belonging, not being accepted, and increasing discrimination in all walks of life.

Hence, when Shahbaz Bhatti was assassinated there were only muted voices in the country who called him a ‘martyr’ since, how could he be a martyr in a country where he was merely a ‘minority’?

Published in The Express Tribune, March 2nd, 2012.]]>
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			<title>Judicial order: Bhatti murder suspect sent on 7-day remand</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/336276/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-case-suspect-sent-on-7-day-physical-remand</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/336276/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-case-suspect-sent-on-7-day-physical-remand#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 15 Feb 12 05:28:39 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[mudassir.raja]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
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				<![CDATA[Anti-terrorism court hands over the custody of Abid Malik to the Islamabad police.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[A man suspected of involvement in the assassination of former minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti was sent on a seven-day remand by an anti-terrorism court on Tuesday.

Special Judge Anti-Terrorism Court-II Rana Masood Akhtar handed over the custody of Abid Malik to the Islamabad Police after SHO Bashir Ahmed sought a 10-day remand of the suspect.

In a written submission before the court, investigators said that Malik was nominated by Bhatti’s family in a supplementary statement handed to the police.

According to the investigators, Bhatti’s family had cited “property issues” which led to the murder of the former minister. The police said Malik was arrested on Monday at the Lahore Airport upon his arrival from Dubai.

Investigators had declared him an absconder of law, along with another suspect Ziaur Rehman, after warrants for their arrest were obtained from the ATC on August 29, 2011.

Police investigating the murder of Bhatti, who was gunned down in Islamabad on March 2, 2011, allegedly arrested Zia in Dubai with the help of Interpol.

“After Ziaur Rehman’s arrest by the Interpol from Dubai last week, Abid decided to secretly come to Pakistan and arrange for his bail-before-arrest,” said a police source.

A police official said that Zia would be repatriated to Pakistan by Interpol sometime next week.

Back to square one?

A police official close to the investigation of the case said it was too early to say how much the two suspects knew about Bhatti’s murder.

Given the circumstances under which they were declared suspects, the investigator was not too optimistic that the suspects would know much about the incident.

He feared the investigations would have to be restarted if the two suspects are freed by the court.

“My biggest fear is that we will be standing nowhere if the suspects are freed by the court because we do not have substantial evidence against them,” said the official.

Zia and Malik were identified as possible suspects in Bhatti’s murder by one, pastor Hafiz Nazar, who was also suspected of being involved in the murder.

Nazar was arrested after the police intercepted phone calls he made to a minorities’ member of the Punjab Assembly from Sargodha, during which he spoke about Bhatti’s murder.

However, on June 25, 2011, a trial court released Nazar, after the police could not gather any evidence against him.

ADDITIONAL INPUT BY UMER NANGIANA FROM ISLAMABAD

Published in The Express Tribune, February 15th, 2012.]]>
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			<title>Alleged suspect in Shahbaz Bhatti case arrested in UAE</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/335274/alleged-suspect-in-shahbaz-bhatti-case-arrested-in-uae</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/335274/alleged-suspect-in-shahbaz-bhatti-case-arrested-in-uae#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 12 Feb 12 05:13:08 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[umer.nangiana]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Officials remain unoptimistic about breakthroughs.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[One of the two suspects in the murder case of former minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti was arrested in Dubai with the help of the International Police (Interpol). He was still to be repatriated to Pakistan after fulfilling legal formalities, which are likely to take over a week.


Officials attached to the case were not too optimistic of the arrest proving to be a breakthrough in investigations. “The names of these two suspects were given by someone who was already released by the court on account of being mentally unstable,” a police official said on Saturday on the condition of anonymity.

Ziaur Rehman and Malik Abid, both residents of Faisalabad, were identified as possible suspects by a pastor named Hafiz Nazar, who was arrested by the Karachi police in March last year. He was arrested and handed over to Islamabad after the Karachi police intercepted his phone calls made to a minorities’ member of the Punjab Assembly from Sargodha.

“However, this man (Hafiz Nazar) proved to be mentally unstable and was later released. He was called in for questioning many times after, but did not prove to be of any use,” said a police official who had investigated Nazar.

Nazar mentioned the names Rehman and Abid, and ‘suspected’ that these two could be involved in murdering Bhatti over property issues. The police said the suspects were not in Pakistan and were later found to be in Dubai.

The Islamabad police approached the Interpol for their arrest. Recently, the Interpol informed them that Zia-ur-Rehman was arrested, while Malik Abid was still at large. However, it was not clear if he had fled or was still in Dubai.

“To treat them as prime suspects would be wrong. We have no evidence to suggest that they were involved in the murder even though they could have certain issues with him,” said the police official.

Both suspects belonged to Faisalabad, the former minister’s native city. They had differences with Bhatti over property issues, “but they were not capable of carrying out such a high-profile assassination,” said the official.

“Investigations regarding the case were muddy and not carried out in a proper manner, some evidence points towards sectarian or militant violence,” he added.  “Now that one of them was arrested, he would be interrogated to establish what they know about the murder.”

The only person who mentioned the suspects in his conversations, Hafiz Nazar, a former pastor, had allegedly made a telephone call to a member of the Punjab Assembly from Sargodha, Tahir Nazeer Chaudhry, and discussed possible suspects involved in the murder.

However, he retreated from his claims before the police, maintaining that they were only assumptions.

Islamabad police in June last year produced him before an anti-terrorism court (ATC) which released him on the basis of lack of evidence. Instead of the arrest triggering optimism about the closure of the case, the official said: “I am afraid that information from him would take us back to the start of investigations.”

Published in The Express Tribune, February 12th, 2012.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti murder: Sipah-e-Sahaba to go to court over murder allegations</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/312278/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-aswj-threaten-to-take-rehman-malik-to-court</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/312278/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-aswj-threaten-to-take-rehman-malik-to-court#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 27 Dec 11 04:55:56 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[asad.kharal]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
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			<description>
				<![CDATA[Ahle Sunnat Wal Jammat lashes out agains­t Rehman Malik’s statem­ents.]]>
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				<![CDATA[The Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamat (ASWJ), a reorganised version of the banned militant outfit Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP), has lashed out at Interior Minister Rehman Malik after he made comments on the SSP’s involvement in the murder of former minister for minority affairs Shahbaz Bhatti.

The ASWJ has gone so far as to claim that the organisation will go to court over the allegations.

ASWJ Central Deputy Secretary Allama Masoodur Rehman Usmani and Islamabad Patron Chief Maulana Abdul Razaq Haidri said in a joint statement that the interior minister had continuously blamed their organisation to hide the government’s  failure in resolving the Bhatti murder case.

As a result, the ASWJ has decided to approach the court, they claimed in the statement.

The leaders further stated that the interior minister had made these allegations in order to make ‘Muslims and Christians fight with each other’. They added that if the minister had any proof then he should bring them before the court and ‘face our challenge’.

They added that their party had no terrorist links whatsoever.

Malik’s statements

The statements taken exception to were made by the interior minister on Sunday when was speaking to the media at a function organised in connection with Christmas celebrations.

Malik said the late Bhatti had been receiving threats from the Taliban as well as the SSP and other organisations. He then stated that the
investigation into the murder had revealed that Bhatti had been killed by members of the SSP.

Malik further informed the media that the two people involved in the crime were not in the country and that Interpol has issued red warrants for their extradition on the Pakistani government’s request.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 27th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Red warrants issued for Shahbaz Bhatti's assassins: Rehman Malik</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/312132/red-warrants-issued-for-shahbaz-bhattis-assassins-rehman-malik</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/312132/red-warrants-issued-for-shahbaz-bhattis-assassins-rehman-malik#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 25 Dec 11 20:48:29 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[The two assassins are activists of Sipah-e-Sahaba, managed to reach Middle East, will bring them back says Malik.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[Interior Minister Rehman Malik said on Sunday that red warrants for assassins of former Federal Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti had been issued and soon they would be brought to justice.    

"The two assassins are activists of the banned outfit Sipah-e-Sahaba. They managed to reach Middle East. However, we are making efforts for their arrest and will bring them back to the country," Malik added.

He was talking to the media after a Christmas cake cutting ceremony at Fatima Church. Malik said Bhatti sacrificed his life for principles and that his services for interfaith harmony would long be remembered.

Earlier this year, Bhatti was killed in the I-8/3 area of Islamabad by three unidentified gunmen as he left his house, when his car was intercepted by a white Suzuki Mehran. Assailants, dressed in shalwar kurtas, first took the minister’s driver out the car and then shot 25 bullets at Bhatti.

According to initial reports, the Tehrik-i-Taliban had claimed responsibility for the attack.

In August, investigations took a twist when police investigators attributed the attack to a property dispute between relatives. They had concluded it was not a religiously-motivated murder despite the fact that the Taliban had claimed responsibility for the assassination.

'PPP considers Christians as brothers, not minority'

Speaking at the ceremony, Malik felicitated the Christian community on Christmas and said,"Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) considers Christians their brothers and not a minority."

He said Christians played an important role for Pakistan's independence and then for the development of the country which was highly commendable.

After the independence of Pakistan, Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah had stated that followers of all faiths would be free to practice their religions. Today followers of all faiths in Pakistan enjoy religious freedom, which shows that the current government believes in religious freedom,” he said.

The minister said he had participated in today's ceremony as he wanted to be a part of the Christian community's happiness. Responding to a question regarding the law and order situation in the country, he said that the situation in the country had improved and that was evident from the current political environment in the country.

'Foolproof security for PTI rally'

Speaking on the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf rally, Malik said that the government had made foolproof security arrangements for the gathering in Karachi. However, he asked all the political parties to avoid using provocative language against each other as it was against democratic norms adding that neither he nor any member of his party ever used harsh words against the Imran Khan.

(Read: Imran's dream team wows Karachi)

"In democracy, there are certain ethics and parameters and others should follow these," he said.

About Shah Mehmood Qureshi's allegations against the President, Malik said that Qureshi remained part of the cabinet for three years but during that period he never raised any objection about the president. He added that after the martyrdom of Benazir Bhutto, Zardari through the slogan "Pakistan Khappay" had saved the country and also gave away powers to the Parliament, which was laudable.

He warned that PPP would also revise its policy if others did not stop using improper language against its leadership.

Regarding a question about intelligence agencies, he said that as per the Charter of Intelligence Agencies, those did not come under the interior ministry. He said the interior ministry had nothing to do with regard to intelligence agencies and Opposition Leader Chaudhry Nisar must do some research before labeling allegations in this regard.

(Read: Nisar warns against removing army, ISI chiefs)

Shahbaz Taseer's whereabouts uncertain

Speaking about Shahbaz Taseer's kidnapping, he said Taseer was kidnapped from a busy area of Lahore and there were conflicting reports about his location. The Chief Minister of Punjab Shahbaz Sharif can better tell about the whereabouts of Shahbaz Taseer, he added.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti’s assassination: New clues point to family rivalry as motive for murder</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/227358/shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-assassination-new-clues-point-to-family-rivalry-as-motive-for-murder</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/227358/shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-assassination-new-clues-point-to-family-rivalry-as-motive-for-murder#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 08 Aug 11 21:57:34 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[zahid.gishkori]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=227358</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Police identi­fy new culpri­ts even though the Punjab­i Taliba­n had claime­d respon­sibili­ty.]]>
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				<![CDATA[Family rivalry and not religious victimisation claimed Minorities’ Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti’s life, according to investigators.


In an interesting twist, the daylight murder in the capital has been attributed to a property dispute between relatives. Police investigators have concluded it was not a religiously-motivated murder in their latest report despite the fact that the Punjabi Taliban had claimed responsibility for the assassination.

Justice appears to be a long time coming for the former minister’s family since the murderers have fled the country.

“Shahbaz’s murder is said to be linked to a ‘chronic rivalry’ with relatives who lived in Faisalabad five years ago,” revealed an investigator associated with the Joint Investigation Team (JIT).

New clues have led the Islamabad police to a family, who left the country due to the rivalry with the Bhattis, the JIT stated in its latest report. The family was also residing in Bhatti’s native town Khushpur, which has produced famous priests and nuns, but some family members are now reportedly living in the UAE. Two or three of them have converted to Islam and are living in Malaysia, said a member of the JIT.

The Express Tribune reported on June 29 that Shahbaz’s murder was plotted by al Qaeda-linked militant commander Ilyas Kashmiri. National and international media ran the  story quoting the newspaper. All but two of his brothers moved to Europe in the aftermath of the assassination for security reasons.

The murderers are currently in Dubai or Kuala Lumpur according to an investigator. However, their names have not been identified yet. “We will approach Interpol for their arrest,” he said.

Paul Bhatti, the slain minister’s brother and an adviser to the prime minister, said he has moved his family to Europe. But he did not disclose their exact location due to security concerns. When questioned if his brother’s murder was a case of family rivalry, Paul only said that Interior Minister Rehman Malik had told him he had contacted Interpol to arrest some accused from the UAE.

However, there has been no further progress, he said quoting police officials. “I will request Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to constitute a judicial commission to investigate my brother’s murder.”

Minister for National Harmony Akram Masih Gill said he would take up the issue with President Zardari and the prime minister on August 11, the day they are to inaugurate Shahbaz Bhatti’s memorial trust. “Paul will also speak to both dignitaries to convey the minorities’ resentment which is increasing with every passing day,” Gill said.

Interpol has not been contacted for assistance because we have no clue about the exact location of the accused, said an interior ministry official familiar with the matter.

“We cannot put our case before Interpol without substantive proof,” he added.

“Firstly, we wanted to close the investigation but then we learnt that there was a chronic ethnic and property dispute between the two families which led to Shahbaz’s murder,” said a police official.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 9th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Timeline: Pakistan Blasphemy law cases, Jan-July 2011</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/223353/timeline-pakistan-blasphemy-law-cases-jan-july-2011</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/223353/timeline-pakistan-blasphemy-law-cases-jan-july-2011#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 04 Aug 11 09:22:01 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[saba.imtiaz]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=223353</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[List provides details of people accused/sentenced under blasphemy laws, harassment of minorities, killings of accused.]]>
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				<![CDATA[Scores of Pakistanis have been harassed and implicated in false cases instituted by misusing the country’s blasphemy laws. Additionally, allegations of blasphemy have led to assassinations, extrajudicial killings and threats to life and property. 

The list below provides details of people accused and sentenced under the blasphemy laws, harassment of minorities as well as extra-judicial killings of blasphemy accused and people connected with the issue from January – July 2011.

_________________________________________________

NEW CASES



Location
Description


Kot Addu&nbsp;

&nbsp;
January   8 – Mohammad Amjad, believed to be mentally challenged, is accused   of committing blasphemy along with his father and a relative. The case was   filed at the request of local cleric Mohammad Sajid. (Section 295-B, PPC   Section 109)


Bhakkar&nbsp;

&nbsp;
January   17 - Shahnawaz filed an FIR against Muhammad Javed of Dullewala. He   claimed that he had received text messages from an unknown cell number that   contained blasphemous remarks.


Karachi&nbsp;

&nbsp;
January   28 - Syed Samiullah, 17, was accused of blasphemy for allegedly writing   blasphemous remarks in his exam answer-sheets. (Section 295-C)


Mansehra
January   31 – Shahnawaz and another man were accused of blasphemy for   allegedly stealing copies of the Quran and burying them in a courtyard.


Okara&nbsp;

&nbsp;
February   6 - Shamsia Colony resident Shafique was arrested for committing   blasphemy, since he had allegedly tied a shoe to a flag bearing a religious   symbol. (Section 295-A)


Rawalpindi
According   to Pakistan Today, two Muslim sects clashed in Rawalpindi and   were charged under the blasphemy and anti-terrorism laws.


Multan
Noor   Khan was accused of blasphemy by his brother. Khan’s brother was reportedly   raising slogans of ‘Sada-i-Madina,’ when Khan and a man called Maulvi Idrees   accusing him of uttering “blasphemous” words about sacred personalities.


Bhakkar
February   20 –School teacher Tanveer Ahmed was beaten up by a mob that was   incited by announcements on mosques’ loudspeakers and text messages. A   student had complained that Ahmed had disrespected images of holy places and   the footprint of Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him).


Faisalabad&nbsp;

&nbsp;
February   16 – According to the Pakistan Christian Post, Agnes Nuggo was   charged of blasphemy by a group of Muslims who failed to acquire a plot of   land from her. (Section 295-A)


Karachi&nbsp;

&nbsp;
February   26 - Idrees Khan was arrested by the Landhi police after his   neighbours handed him over for allegedly setting leaves of the holy book on   fire. According to his father, a day before the incident, he and Idrees   visited a pesh imam of a mosque, who asked them to bury the leaves of the   Quran after setting them on fire.


Gilgit&nbsp;

&nbsp;
March   26 - Abdur Rauf lodged a complaint with the police that a man named   Yaqoob had allegedly used abusive language against Prophet Mohammad (peace be   upon him). March 27 – Yaqoob’s father shows documents to the police to   prove his son is mentally ill. (Sections 295, 296, 298, 500, 506)


Lahore&nbsp;

&nbsp;
March   30 - Shadbagh resident Qasim lodged an FIR against Irfan Rafique.   Qasim said that he had received a text message which contained derogatory   language about Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him). He said that he and   three others discovered that Rafique used the number from which the text   message was sent. (Section 295-C)


Lahore&nbsp;

&nbsp;
April   8 – Case filed against Kasur resident Akhtar Hussain for tearing a   Bible outside St Joseph’s Church in retaliation for American pastor Terry   Jones burning copies of the Quran. (Section 295-A)


Gujranwala&nbsp;

&nbsp;
April   15 – Gujranwala police took two Christian men into protective   custody after people tried to spark violence by accusing them of desecrating   the Quran and committing blasphemy against Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon   him) (Sections 295-B, 295-C)


Mardan&nbsp;

&nbsp;
April 19 –   Ebadullah was accused by his father of desecrating the Quran. (Section 295-B)


Sargodha&nbsp;

&nbsp;
May   26 – Basharat arrested on charges of allegedly sending text messages   that contained blasphemous content about the companions of Prophet Mohammad   (peace be upon him). (Sections 295-A, 298-A)


Karachi
July   2 - 25-year-old Muslim arrested, accused of burning the Holy Quran


Karachi&nbsp;

&nbsp;
July   29 – Printing press owner and colleague arrested after being accused of   printing a book with allegedly blasphemous material. (Section 295-A)



_________________________________________________

DEATHS ASSOCIATED WITH THE BLASPHEMY LAW

&nbsp;



Location
Description


Islamabad
January 4 –   Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer assassinated by his bodyguard Malik Mumtaz   Qadri


Islamabad
March 2 –   Federal Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti assassinated. The   Punjab Taliban and Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility.


Rawalpindi
March   5 - Mohammad Imran, who was released along with Sajid Mehmood on   February 13, 2010, was sitting at a shop near a bus stand in Danda village   when three masked gunmen killed him.


Karachi&nbsp;

&nbsp;
March   15 – Qamar David, who was serving a life sentence in two blasphemy   cases, dies in Central Jail. Jail officials say he died of a heart attack,   but his lawyer said he had been in good health. His autopsy report was not   made public. (Sections 295-A, 295-C)


Lahore
July   17 – Shaukat Ali, who was serving a sentence after being convicted on   blasphemy charges, dies at Services Hospital. Jail officials say he died of   natural causes, but his family said they were unaware he was unwell.



_________________________________________________

HARASSMENT



Location
Description


Lahore
January   15 - Two Christian women beaten by an angry mob over frivolous   blasphemy allegations


Karachi
January   18 - Amar Ali and Nazia Amar, who were accused of desecrating the   Holy Quran and Hadith in Sialkot, protested at the press club and denied the   allegations


Islamabad
January 31 –Senator Humayun Mandokhel discusses activist   Marvi Sirmed in the Senate, who had invited him to Salmaan Taseer’s chehlum   and used the word ‘shaheed’ (martyr) to refer to him in a text message, which   he disagreed to. Mandokhel asked to file a privilege motion against Sirmed   since their exchange had been reported in the press. According to Sirmed,   Jamaat-e-Islami’s Senator Ibrahim also reacted to the word martyr   similarly. (Personal interview)


Lahore, Karachi
February   25 – Banners appear in cities accusing Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz   Sharif’s wife Tehmina Durrani of committing blasphemy in her 1998 bookBlasphemy.


Lahore
April   6 – An attempt by Christian workers to file the FIR of a blasphemy   case against the MD of the Solid Waste Management department dismissed by an   additional district and sessions judge.


Gujranwala
April   30 - Hundreds of people attacked a Christian seminary, a church and   houses of Christians after police release two Christians who had been accused   of blasphemy from protective custody.


Sialkot
May –   Bookseller Gulzar Masih accused of committing blasphemy after former   partner’s son says his workers burned pages of the Holy Quran. The dispute is   solved by market elders


Lahore
May   18 – Clerics attacked blasphemy accused Irfan Rafique’s lawyer at   sessions court and take an undertaking from him that he would not appear   before the court to defend Rafique.


Kahna
May   29 – Muhammad Shoaib and three men entered a church in Lakhoki   village and desecrated the Bible.


Lahore
May   30 – Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Samiul Haq) called for the Bible to be   banned on account of allegedly containing blasphemous material


Lahore
July   5 – PPP Lahore president Samina Khalid Ghurki accused of committing   blasphemy by clerics


Lahore
July 12 – 30 Barelvi clerics issued a fatwa condemning a   newspaper advertisement of the Population Welfare Department which they said   insulted the beard. On July 13, Tahafuz Namoos-e-Rasalat nominates the editors, publishers and printers of Jang, Nawa-e-Waqt and Daily Express in an application stating they committed blasphemy by publishing the advertisement. It asks that they be tried along with the other offenders under Section 295-A, while the chief minister and chief secretary should be prosecuted under section 109 of the Pakistan Penal Code.


Lahore
July   22 – Barelvi clerics protest against the police for not filing an FIR   against a man accused of blasphemy.



 _________________________________________________

SENTENCES



Location
Description


Bahawalpur&nbsp;

&nbsp;
January   6 - Man sentenced to life imprisonment by a sessions court for allegedly   burning a copy of the Quran. (Section 295-B)


Daira Din Panah&nbsp;

&nbsp;
January   11 – Mosque imam Mohammad Shafi and his son Mohammad Aslam jailed   for life on blasphemy charges. (Sections 295-C, 295-A)


Bahawalpur&nbsp;

&nbsp;
February   3 – A sessions court handed down the death sentence and a Rs0.2   million fine to a man in Jalalpur Peerwala for committing blasphemy. (Sections   295-C, 298-A)



 _________________________________________________

BAIL



Location
Description


Lahore&nbsp;

&nbsp;
February   10 - The Lahore High Court granted bail to a man accused of   blasphemy who had been in jail for four months. (Section 295-B)



 _________________________________________________

ACQUITTAL



Location
Description


Rawalpindi
June   2 – An additional district and sessions judge cleared Hector Haleem,   Basharat Masih and Robin Masih of blasphemy charges. The case was registered   last March. The court ordered criminal action against the investigation   officer and the complainant after they could not prove charges against the   accused.



_________________________________________________

• The blasphemy law in Pakistan’s Penal Code can be read here.

• To view the cases on Google Maps click here.

• To download an excel sheet containing the above, click here.

_________________________________________________

Sources: The Express Tribune, Dawn, The News, Daily Times, Pakistan Today, Pakistan Christian Post

Disclaimer: This timeline and corresponding data is based on published news reports. Several of these cases have been verified independently; however The Express Tribune has not verified the status of each case. Please alert us of any additional cases by leaving a comment/link below.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti murder, Silk Bank blast: Police closing in on prime suspects, IGP</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/205754/bhatti-murder-silk-bank-blast-police-closing-in-on-prime-suspects-igp</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/205754/bhatti-murder-silk-bank-blast-police-closing-in-on-prime-suspects-igp#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 09 Jul 11 01:11:34 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[express]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
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				<![CDATA[Says investigations will bear fruit soon; hands over stolen vehicles back to their owners.]]>
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				<![CDATA[City’s top cop on Friday said police were closing in on the suspects involved in the assassination of minorities’ minister Shahbaz Bhatti and the suicide attack on a private bank in sector I-8.


Talking to media, the Inspector-General of Police Bani Amin said police investigators were very close to arresting the prime suspects in Bhatti murder case.

“The two suspects are abroad and we are working on ways to arrest them and bring them back,” said Amin. He added that all evidences examined till now lead towards Punjabi Taliban being behind the murder; however, the motive behind the killing could not be ascertained.

“Once the two prime suspects are arrested, the motive behind the killing could be known,” said the IGP. He claimed that police had found important leads into the case of Silk Bank suicide bombing and a breakthrough was expected in a couple of days.

He was speaking at a ceremony held to formally hand over stolen vehicles back to their owners. The vehicles were recovered by the Anti-Car Lifting Cell (ACLC) of the police after they busted four gangs of criminals involved in carlifting cases.

Eight members of three gangs of car receivers and one of carjackers were arrested by the ACLC and 22 vehicles worth millions of rupees were recovered from their possession.

“The suspects had confessed of stealing 180 vehicles from different districts of the country and further investigations were underway to recover them,” said Amin. The IGP said ACLC is being restructured to make it more efficient and its past performance is being reviewed.

The three arrested car receivers were ring leaders of their respective gangs. They were identified as Moazam Ali, a resident of Garhi Hameed Gul, Charsada, Malik Shaukat Ali, a resident of Taro Jaba district Noweshera and Waseem Ullah, resident of Aza Khel, district Nowshera.

These car receivers have confessed to have links with car receivers of other districts and they used to contact owners of stolen vehicles with demand to pay them money to return their cars. They also admitted of tampering with vehicles’ and preparing bogus registration books.

The other suspects arrested by these ACLC teams were identified as Bakht Shah Zeb, Raja Azhar Mehmud, Abdul Rehman, Sajjad Nazeer, Fahad Naseem and Razim Khan.

IGP Bani Amin also handed over the keys of vehicles bearing the registration number of Islamabad to their actual owners while the police of
other districts had been informed about the vehicles stolen from their respective jurisdictions.

On the information provided by the arrested car thieves, police teams had been sent for the arrest of their accomplices and gang members. Help of local police of various districts had been sought to cordon off their respective areas that the car jackers used to transport stolen vehicles.

The IGP said policemen in plain clothes would be deployed in areas prone to car lifting and the strength of police officials will be enhanced at the entry and exit points.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 9th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Inquiry into Shahbaz Bhatti's death progressing: Brother</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/199862/inquiry-into-shahbaz-bhattis-death-progressing-brother</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/199862/inquiry-into-shahbaz-bhattis-death-progressing-brother#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 30 Jun 11 18:18:15 +0500</pubDate>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=199862</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Paul Bhatti says some people suggested the official was killed by those close to him, but, &quot;the truth had emerged&quot;.]]>
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				<![CDATA[An investigation into the assassination minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti is on "the right track," his brother said Thursday.

Shahbaz Bhatti, assasinated in March, campaigned for the rights of Christians before he was gunned down in Islamabad - apparently by extremists.

"The investigations into the homicide of my brother are finally on the right track," Paul Bhatti, currently an adviser to Pakistan's government on religious minorities told the Catholic Fides news agency.

"It was committed by the Taliban and fanatics. Now, we are waiting for the capture of the perpetrators, who are in Dubai," he said.

He claimed investigators have determined that al Qaeda's "Brigade 313", led by senior Pakistani Taliban Ilyas Kashmiri, asked a Taliban commander based in Punjab named Asmatullah Mawaia to kill his brother.

There were people who tried to suggest the official was killed by those close to him, but, "the truth has emerged," Paul Bhatti said.

"We were convinced that he had been killed for his work, for his defence of human rights (and) the rights of Christians. (...) The investigation has proved us right," he added

Bhatti called for the investigation to be quickly concluded and for the culprits to be arrested, which, he said, "would be a good sign for the rule of law in Pakistan."

Bhatti was shot as he left his mother's home in a residential area of Islamabad. Police said the attackers fired at least 25 bullets at his vehicle.

A letter found at the scene, purportedly from supporters of al Qaeda and the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the killing.

Bhatti, who left a chilling video prophecy of his assassination, had vowed to fight to the death in defence of Pakistan's persecuted minorities. He became the second high-profile victim among opponents of the blasphemy law.

Two months before he was killed, Punjab province governor Salman Taseer was shot dead by one of his own police bodyguards, who cited the politician's opposition to the blasphemy law as justification for the killing.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti’s assassination: ‘Kashmiri plotted the murder’</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/198389/bhatti%e2%80%99s-assassination-%e2%80%98kashmiri-plotted-the-murder%e2%80%99</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/198389/bhatti%e2%80%99s-assassination-%e2%80%98kashmiri-plotted-the-murder%e2%80%99#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 29 Jun 11 03:45:40 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[zahid.gishkori]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=198389</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[JIT report says the group crafted plan with the help of Punjabi Taliban.]]>
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				<![CDATA[In an interesting twist to the Shahbaz Bhatti murder case, an investigation report has revealed that the Ilyas Kashmiri group had crafted the plan to assassinate the former minorities’ affairs minister.


Bhatti was gunned down by unknown persons in front of his residence in Islamabad in broad daylight on March 3, 2011.

The group had planned to kill Bhatti with the help of Asmatullah Mawaia, the self-proclaimed leader of the Punjabi Taliban, according to a six-page report by the Ministry of Interior, based on the findings of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing Bhatti’s murder case.

“[The plan] was executed by elements of Tehreek-i-Islami, coupled with the disgruntled lot of ‘Ghazi Force’ stationed at Islamabad,” the JIT report stated. Efforts to identify other executors are ongoing, it added.

The JIT report continued to reveal that a man calling himself Shabbir Haidri informed MPA Chaudhry Tahir Naveed by telephone about the plan to kill Bhatti.

Terrorists Umarul-Bashar and Ameer Mawia of Faisalabad and Abu Saeed and Tahirul-Hassan of Islamabad had executed the plan, the report alleged.

They abided by the directions of terrorist Khilji of Ameer-i-Taliban, it added.

The JIT, through its findings, learnt that the actual name of Umarul-Bashar is Abid Malik and he lived in Nai Abadi, Faisalabad. Abu Saeed’s actual name is Qari Ziaur-Rehman, also from Faisalabad. According to the findings of the report, both terrorists fled to Dubai, from Karachi via Sri Lanka.

The JIT also discovered that the actual name of Shabbir Haidri is Nazar Muhammad, a resident of district Narowal, and had been temporarily residing in Akhtar Colony in Karachi.

Haidri was apprehended from Karachi and brought to Islamabad on April 24 for interrogation, which is still in progress.

The report also claimed that as soon as the culprits involved in this high-profile murder are traced, investigation will be concluded on merit.

State Minister for Minorities’ Affairs Akram Masih Gill on Monday demanded the formation of a judicial commission to investigate his predecessor Bhatti’s murder.

The demand was made at a time when the Islamabad police decided to close the case “for want of evidence”. SSP Islamabad Tahir Alam had informed parliamentarians that the JIT interrogated 519 suspects across four districts adjacent to the federal capital, but not a single lead has come about.

The JIT also questioned Mumtaz Qadri, the self-confessed assassin of former governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer, regarding Bhatti’s killing, as well as Tehreek-i-Islami activists, but to no avail, Alam said.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 29th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti murder: Gill demands formation of judicial commission</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/197752/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-gill-demands-formation-of-judicial-commission</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/197752/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-gill-demands-formation-of-judicial-commission#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 28 Jun 11 05:00:06 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[zahid.gishkori]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=197752</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Demand made at a time when Islamabad police have decided to close the case &quot;for want of evidence&quot;.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[State Minister for Minorities’ Affairs Akram Masih Gill has demanded the formation of a judicial commission to investigate his predecessor Shahbaz Bhatti’s murder. The demand was made at a time when the Islamabad police have decided to close the case “for want of evidence”.


“I have forwarded a proposal on behalf of minority representatives in parliament to the prime minister for the constitution of a judicial commission,” Gill told The Express Tribune. Recommendations by the National Assembly Standing Committee on Minorities have also been clubbed with the proposal.

Earlier, SSP Islamabad Tahir Alam Khan informed parliamentarians that a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) interrogated 519 suspected across four districts adjacent to the federal capital, but not a single lead has turned up. “We are about to close the case file… We are not optimistic about any further development,” he added. The JIT also questioned Mumtaz Qadri, self-confessed assassin of former governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer, regarding Bhatti’s killing, as well as Tehrik-e-Islami activists, but to no avail.

Recommendations for Ministry of Non-Muslim Affairs

The committee has suggested the formation of a ministry of non-Muslim affairs as an alternative to devolution of the minorities’ affairs ministry to the provinces. “If the religious affairs ministry can function at the Centre, why is there a problem with the ministry for minorities’ affairs?” Gill questioned. “If there is any legal complication to form the ministry, the federal government should address minorities’ issues,” suggested MNA Dr Nelson Azeem.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 28th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>State Minister for Minorities Affairs demands Bhatti probe</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/197499/state-minister-for-minorities-affairs-demands-bhatti-probe</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/197499/state-minister-for-minorities-affairs-demands-bhatti-probe#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 27 Jun 11 17:22:48 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[zahid.gishkori]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=197499</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Parliamentary representatives for minorities to forward proposal for formation of commission to PM Gilani.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[State Minister for Minorities Affairs Akram Masih Gill demanded the formation of a judicial commission to probe Shahbaz Bhatti’s murder case, on Monday.

“I have forwarded a proposal on behalf of members’ parliaments representing minorities to Prime Minister for formation of a judicial commission to probe Shahbaz Bhatti’s case,” Gill told The Express Tribune.

Recommendations of the National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee on Minorities had also been clubbed with the proposal seeking formation of a judicial commission. Gill said that the police had failed to get solid clues despite a lapse of four months, he added.

The police have already interrogated around 519 suspects across almost six surrounding districts of Islamabad but could not find any clues. Earlier, SSP Tahir Alam had informed the parliamentarians that the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) had interrogated 168 suspected in Rawalpindi, 11 in Islamabad, 14 in Jhelum, 187 from Chakwal and 121 from Attock, but unfortunately could not find any leads to trace the real culprits.

“We are close to winding up the file of this crucial murder as there are no further developments in the case,” he said.

"However, geo-fencing of the area is being carried out but we are not optimistic about it because 15,000 cell phones’ numbers have been detected but resulted in no new findings while the CCTV footage analysis of the Qureshi Recruiting Agency located in House No 766, Sector I-8/3 Islamabad didn’t provide any clues either," he added.

During the investigation, Hafiz Nazar alias John Alexander, Shahbaz Bhatti’s driver and Mumtaz Qadri were interrogated, he added, but to no avail. The JIT had apprehended and interrogated Tehrik-e-Islami activists too but that didn’t bear any results either.

Recommendations for Ministry of Non-Muslim Affairs

The NA Standing Committee has suggested the formation of a Ministry of Non-Muslim Affairs rather than devolution of the minorities’ affairs ministry to the provinces.

“If the Religious Affairs Ministry can work under the Centre, why can’t the minorities’ affairs ministry run here? If there is any legal complication in forming a Non-Muslim Affairs’ Ministry than the government should address the problems of minorities at Center level,” suggested MNA Dr Nelson Azeem.

During the course of the proceedings, Chairman NA Committee Mahesh Kumar Malani also endorsed the idea. He said their recommendations will be sent to Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani.

“The matter of formation of a Non-Muslim Affairs Ministry replacing Minorities Affairs Ministry will also be taken up with him,” he added.

The demand for a judicial commission to probe the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti comes at a time when Islamabad Police has decided to close the case for want of evidence.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti’s murder case: ATC orders release of suspect</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/196178/atc-acquits-shahbaz-bhatti-murder-suspect</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/196178/atc-acquits-shahbaz-bhatti-murder-suspect#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 26 Jun 11 05:37:51 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[mudassir.raja]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=196178</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Hafiz Nazar freed after police failed to present any evidence against him.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[An anti-terrorism court on Saturday ordered the release of a suspect held in connection with the murder of former federal minister for minority affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, after the police failed to produce any evidence against him.


Special Judge ATC-II Syed Pervaiz Ali Shah directed the I-9 Industrial Area police to free Hafiz Nazar Muhammad, while denying an extension of physical remand for the suspect.

SHO Sajjad Bukhari submitted before the court a request for the extension of the physical remand for eight more days, after Hafiz Nazar was already interrogated for five days.

Muhammad was arrested on June 19, after he made calls to different persons claiming he knew about the assassins of the former federal minister.

The judge asked the police whether the suspect was nominated in the FIR and if they had managed to obtain any useful information from him.

However, the SHO could not come up with a satisfactory answer, resulting in the court’s direction to set him free.

The investigators had informed the court that Hafiz Nazar was traced through his cell phone after he made several calls to different persons, including minorities MPA Tahir Nazeer Chaudhry claiming he knew of Bhatti’s assassins.

It was on March 2 this year that an unidentified person riding a white Mehran car shot Bhatti dead at I-8 Markaz as he was going to his office after meeting his ailing mother.

Bhatti, the only Christian in the federal cabinet, was killed in Islamabad on March 2 this year by three unidentified gunmen.

The killers left a note stating they had killed Bhatti because he had raised his voice against the blasphemy laws.

Taseer assassination case

Meanwhile on Saturday, defence lawyers in the case of the assassination of former Punjab governor Salman Taseer cross-examined the magistrate who recorded the confessional statement of the self confessed killed Mumtaz Qadri.

Special Judge Anti Pervaiz Ali Shah put of the hearing of the case till July 2, after leading defence lawyer Malik Muhammad Rafiq completed the cross-examiantion of Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Ali Randhawa.

The AC in its statement had said that Qadri, a constable of Punjab’s elite force, had confessed killing former governor for criticising the blasphemy laws.

The defence lawyers, on the other hand, have been claiming that the confessional statement of Qadri was obtained through coercive measures.

The hearing of the case of the murder of Taseer, who was shot dead in Islamabad on January 4 this year, was taken up after over a month.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 26th, 2011.

&nbsp;]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti’s murder case : Police make another arrest</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/193991/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-accused-arrested-in-islamabad</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/193991/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-accused-arrested-in-islamabad#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 23 Jun 11 04:05:08 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[mudassir.raja]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=193991</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The suspect called a minorities’ lawmaker and said he knew Bhatti’s assassins.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Islamabad Police have arrested a man suspected to be involved in the killing of former federal minister for minorities Shahbaz Bhatti.


The police are interrogating the suspect, who was traced through his cell phone.

The suspect Hafiz Nazar Muhammad was arrested by the police on June 19, and booked at the I-9 police station, under Section 302/34 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

I-9 industrial area’s police on Monday obtained a five-day physical remand of the suspect from an anti-terrorism court in Rawalpindi.

The police said they wanted to interrogate him about his accomplices.

The investigators informed the court that Nazar had called a minorities’ lawmaker from Sargohda Tahir Nazeer Chaudhry and claimed he knew Bhatti’s assassins.

The MPA informed the police who subsequently tracked Nazar down.

A detailed investigation was conducted before arresting Nazar, who is believed to have been working with Bhatti for the past 10 years.

Police sources also claim that the accused pretended to be a Christian pastor and had a personal grudge against the minister.

The police would produce the suspect on June 25 for further investigations.

No witnesses or evidence has yet been presented to prove that Nazar was involved in the killing, sources add.

Bhatti, the only Christian in the federal cabinet, was killed in Islamabad on March 2 this year by three unidentified gunmen.

The killers, reportedly belonging to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, left a note stating they had killed Bhatti for raising his voice against the blasphemy laws.

Earlier, Bhatti had voiced his fears that he believed he would be “the next target” following the assassination of Governor Punjab Salmaan Taseer for speaking out against the blasphemy law.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 23rd,  2011.]]>
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			<title>Developments: Headway made in identifying Bhatti’s murder suspects</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/184381/developments-headway-made-in-identifying-bhatti%e2%80%99s-murder-suspects</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/184381/developments-headway-made-in-identifying-bhatti%e2%80%99s-murder-suspects#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 08 Jun 11 05:14:18 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[express]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=184381</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Police claims two suspects fled the country.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Islamabad police has made important headway in identifying suspects involved in the murder of slain former Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti. 

The Inspector General of Police Wajid Ali Khan Durrani while talking to media claimed that two of the suspects had fled the country. He did not give the names of the suspects or their link to any organisation. The IGP was speaking at a ceremony held by the Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) to destroy over 23,000 impounded pressure horns in their headquarters here on Tuesday.


Speaking at the ceremony, Durrani said that noise pollution is injurious to human health and ITP is striving hard to make the capital noise-free.

ITP has constituted a special squad to check noise pollution, which will take action against use of pressure horns, extra seats and curtains in public vehicles. The horns destroyed were seized in the past five months.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 8th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Condolence reference: APMA vows to fill Shahbaz Bhatti’s shoes</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/174037/condolence-reference-apma-vows-to-fill-shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-shoes</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/174037/condolence-reference-apma-vows-to-fill-shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-shoes#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 23 May 11 03:41:01 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[saleha.rauf]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=174037</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Minorities alliance to remain united to finish mission of slain minister.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA) held a reference in memory of Shahbaz Bhatti, the slain minister for minorities affairs, and vowed to stay united and continue his good works on Sunday.


“I love my homeland and I want to die for a cause like my brother did,” said Paul Jacob, the new APMA director. “I want to make his dream come true and I’ll lead my people like he used to.”

Jacob, Bhatti’s eldest brother, is based in Italy and runs a hospital there. He said he had been offered and rejected Italian nationality because he thought of himself as a Pakistani only.

The condolence reference began at Ambassador Hotel with a documentary about Bhatti’s struggle to win the release of Aasia Bibi, a Christian woman jailed for blasphemy. The minister, like Governor Salmaan Taseer before him, was apparently killed for his support for Aasia Bibi. Most of those in attendance were from the Christian community.

Bishop of Lahore Alexander John Malik voiced concern about minorities’ rights in Pakistan. He said Pakistani law discriminated against the minorities because it required the president and prime minister to be Muslims.

He said that Christian politicians were clean, with no corruption allegations against them, “not even in WikiLeaks”. He denied that the Christian community was getting aid from foreign countries.

Malik accused the Urdu press of bias against the Christian community. “We Pakistanis are experts at conspiracy theories. The Urdu press is trying to change reality,” he said of the coverage of the minister’s murder. He said the Urdu press had refused to publish an article he wrote about Bhatti, until a literary magazine, Hum Sukhan, carried it in its pages.

Author Kanwal Feroze compared Bhatti to historical character Dulla Bhatti, who is said to have fought, and died, with 10,000 men to force Mughal Emperor Akbar to release a Hindu woman who was his keep. “Bhatti belongs to a family that knows how to defend the weak and poor. He defended Aasia Bibi and lost his life,” said Feroze.

Beelam Hussain, president of the Pakistan Peoples Party women’s wing, said Bhatti’s death was a great loss to the country and the party. “I have a high opinion about the Christian community as my schooling is from Sacred Heart and I have a great love and respect for my Christian teachers and friends,” she said.

She said that Bhatti had refused to accept extra security before his killing, though he was warned that there were elements trying to assassinate him. “He rejected the suggestion [of extra security] politely, saying that death was unavoidable and he would love to die for a cause. He was killed a month later,” Hussain said.

At the end, the audience took an oath to stay united and continue in Bhatti’s footsteps.

Dr Paul Bhatti of the APMA, Group Captain (retd) Cecil Chaudhry, Bishop Sebastian Shah, Bishop Samuel Azariah, PPP Women’s Wing Lahore president Faiza Malik, governor’s advisor Bushra Malik, Father Yousaf Mani, Father Abid Habib, MNA Samina Khalid Ghurki, and MPAs Saghira Islam, Najmi Salim, Tahir Naveed and Pervaiz Rafique also spoke at the event.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 23rd, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Canada-based poet dedicates poem to Bhatti</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/151109/canada-based-poet-dedicates-poem-to-bhatti</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/151109/canada-based-poet-dedicates-poem-to-bhatti#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 17 Apr 11 04:27:29 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[express]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=151109</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[In a tribute, Antao-Xavier called the slain minister a ‘freedom warrior’.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Pakistani-born poet, children’s author and publisher Cheryl Antao-Xavier has dedicated a poem from her upcoming collection, “Bruised But Unbroken”, to the slain minority affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti.


On Saturday, Antao-Xavier, presented Shahbaz Bhatti’s brother Peter with a copy of her book in Toronto, Canada, at a memorial service in his honour. She also handed Peter Bhatti a plaque with the poem inscribed on it.

In her tribute, Antao-Xavier called Bhatti a “freedom warrior” and a “martyr” who “must people the shadows of our minds” -- referring to his credentials as a rights campaigner and a defender of public freedoms. Both as a rights activist and as a minister, Bhatti struggled for the repeal of the country’s blasphemy law.

Antao-Xavier, a member of The Writers’ Union of Canada and the national coordinator for the Canadian Federation of Poets, said that she had invited Peter Bhatti to attend the launch of “Bruised But Unbroken” on April 30.

Another poem pays tribute to Salamat Masih, who was accused of committing blasphemy at the age of 14.

Her first book, “Dance of the Peacock” was published in 2008. 

Published in The Express Tribune, April 17th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti's killers will soon be identified: IG Islamabad</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/144175/bhattis-killers-will-soon-be-identified-ig-islamabad</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/144175/bhattis-killers-will-soon-be-identified-ig-islamabad#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 06 Apr 11 10:59:44 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[express]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=144175</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Wajid Ali Durrani says those responsible will soon be brought to justice.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Inspector General (IG) Islamabad Wajid Ali Durrani on Wednesday said the police would soon be in a position to identify the assassins of former Federal Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti.

Talking to the media in Islamabad he said the investigation into the case was underway and those responsible will be brought to justice soon.

Bhatti was killed on March 2, 2011 outside one of his residences in Islamabad on unidentified gunmen.

Later, the Tehrik-i-Taliban had claimed responsibility for the attack.

Commenting on the tightening security measures in Islamabad, Durrani said that that CCTV's will be installed across the capital city in 6 month's time.

The CCTV cameras, he said, would monitor different sections and enhance investigative capacity by providing vital video evidence from crime scenes.]]>
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			<title>Judicial commission sought to probe Bhatti’s murder</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/142492/judicial-commission-sought-to-probe-bhatti%e2%80%99s-murder</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/142492/judicial-commission-sought-to-probe-bhatti%e2%80%99s-murder#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 04 Apr 11 04:17:46 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[express]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Punjab]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=142492</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[All Pakistan Minorities Alliance demands judicial commission to investigate murder of minister.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[A judicial commission headed by a High Court judge should be constituted to investigate the murder of Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti. This was demanded by the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance during a protest march from Nasser Bagh to Punjab Assembly on Sunday.


Speakers at the occasion expressed reservations about the current investigation of the incident.

They said the investigators instead of tracing the killers were twisting the facts to portray the murder in a different manner.

They paid tribute to Bhatti for raising his voice for minorities. They said the minorities in Pakistan would not let Bhatti’s sacrifice go to waste. They said had it not been for Bhatti, minorities would not have got a five per cent quota in government jobs and four seats in the Senate.

The rally ended at the Punjab Assembly after a prayer for the country’s safety, progress and an end of terrorism incidents.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4th,  2011.]]>
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			<title>How many more Bhattis?</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/141789/how-many-more-bhattis</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/141789/how-many-more-bhattis#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 02 Apr 11 18:28:03 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[usman.ahmed]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=141789</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Let us become a nation united by our plurality, shared values and common goals.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Blasphemy is a difficult subject to broach these days. It is a notion no one dare challenge or discuss out of fear of inciters of sectarian violence. Dissenting voices have been subdued, and yet others have chosen the supine comforts of wilful ignorance, in case they are next on the assassins’ list.&nbsp;

One month on from the murder of Shahbaz Bhatti, who was gunned to death under the darkest clouds in Islamabad, like ostriches, our heads are still firmly rooted in the sand. Mr Bhatti was not butchered for defaming the Holy Prophet (pbuh) or suggesting that the Holy Quran was a man-made scripture. Instead, his only apparent crime was to be an outspoken critic of the misuse of these pernicious laws. Tragically, he paid for this gross affront with his life.

While the country has reconciled itself to another religiously motivated murder, the question that confronts us all is, will anyone now have the courage to stand against the untrammelled hatred that threatens to destroy the nation?

Fundamentalists, terrorists, the Taliban, al Qaeda, call them what you will, are not the only standard-bearers of Islam. The truth is that our own reticence and neglect has only served the interests of the religious right and allowed them to infiltrate the moderate mainstream. We are left with a rather depressing state of affairs in which acts of murder and violence have become a part of daily life.

Enough is enough. The time has come to recoil from the mullah’s convoluted brand of religion. Pakistanis and Muslims of all stripes need to categorically reject the militant ideology of the fundamentalists and project a humane and tolerant version of Islam that is worthy of the name. Rather than allowing the mullahs to force their extremist ideology on us, why do we not impose our beliefs on them? The more we withdraw into our shells, the more damage we inflict upon ourselves and our society. No longer can hardliners be allowed to maintain the pretence that intolerance and barbarity are synonymous with Islam.

The perpetrators of crimes as heinous as the murder of Bhatti and Salmaan Taseer, need to be vociferously condemned and a strong message must be sent to religious hardliners that the majority of Pakistanis want to live in a free and open society. The government, too, needs to stop abdicating control to the rule of the mob. If they don’t, then the dispensers of vigilante justice will continue to thrive in the atmosphere of impunity created by the failure of the state to act against those who perpetrate violence in the name of religion. Let us become a nation united by our plurality, shared values and common goals.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 03rd, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti murder: One-minute silence in Senate</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/139180/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-one-minute-silence-in-senate</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/139180/shahbaz-bhatti-murder-one-minute-silence-in-senate#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 29 Mar 11 04:25:59 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[express]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=139180</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Senator Hafiz Rasheed Ahmed from Fata terms one-minutes silence fort Shahbaz Bhatti “un-Islamic”.]]>
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				<![CDATA[The Senate seemed less than enthusiastic when a Hindu senator asked the house to observe one minute of silence to mourn the death of Shahbaz Bhatti.


Dr Khatumal Jeevan suggested that the senators, meeting for the first time since the minorities affairs minister was assassinated, observe one minute of silence as a mark of respect.

Senator Hafiz Rasheed Ahmed from Fata immediately responded that this would be “un-Islamic” as Sharia did not allow such things.

The puzzled Senate chairman turned to Leader of the House Nayyer Hussain Bokhari and sought his consent to Dr Jeevan’s demand. After Maulana Gul Naseeb led prayers for the late senator, the Senate chairman announced they would observe one minute of silence.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 29th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Shahbaz Bhatti murder: Key suspect arrested, says secretary interior</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/133328/one-suspected-arrested-in-bhatti-murder-case</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/133328/one-suspected-arrested-in-bhatti-murder-case#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 17 Mar 11 02:04:17 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[umer.nangiana]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=133328</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Zamman tells assembly panel that the arrested man is being interrogated.]]>
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				<![CDATA[Investigators have achieved a breakthrough in the murder of the slain minorities’ affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti and arrested a key suspect, Interior Secretary Chaudhry Qammar Zamman told the public accounts committee of Parliament on Wednesday.


When a committee member, Asia Nasir of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazl), asked about the status of the probe into Bhatti’s assassination, the secretary said that the police had got to the people involved in the murder of the minister.

Without giving details about the exact number or their possible links to any militant organisation, the secretary said that one of the people behind the assassination had been nabbed by the police and was being interrogated. Police, however, declined to confirm the report.

A police official close to investigations said that a number of suspects had been rounded up and were being questioned, but none of them could be termed a prime suspect.

“A suspect was under investigation but he failed to provide any information which could lead to a breakthrough,” said the police official. He rejected the assertion that the elements behind the assassination had been ascertained.

Earlier, the secretary interior told the committee that several other lawmakers and ministers had reported threats to their lives and requested for more security. Adequate security arrangements were being made for these parliamentarians, he added.

“All ministers had been asked to keep their security details with them at all times,” the secretary said.

Citing intelligence reports, he said certain parliamentarians were on the hit-list of militants. He assured that these parliamentarians had been informed about the threats and accordingly provided security.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 17th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Terror in the twin cities</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/130582/terror-in-the-twin-cities</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/130582/terror-in-the-twin-cities#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Wed, 16 Mar 11 10:16:49 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[umer.nangiana]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=130582</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Despite being home to the powers that be, Islamabad and Rawalpindi are far from secure.]]>
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				<![CDATA[“Jahan shikar ziada ho ga, shikari udhar he aye ga. Aur Islamabad main shikar bahut hai.” (Hunters love fields abundant with prey and there is a lot of prey in Islamabad). This is how a senior police official summed up Islamabad’s security situation.

Despite being home to the establishment’s top leadership, the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi have become desperately insecure. Over the past few years, several high profile assassination attempts, bomb blasts and shootings have exposed just how vulnerable security in these cities is.

On paper, Islamabad seems to be secure and well-guarded against terrorist threats. At one point, the city could boast of 93 police check posts, although the number has since gone down to 43.

Every checkpoint is manned by at least three police personnel and a gunner equipped with a Chinese made Semi-Machine Gun or a Kalashnikov. Their job is to check every vehicle entering the city for possible terror threats, and to respond to a threat if it should arise.

However, till this day officials can cite only one incident where security personnel at a check post successfully prevented an attack: In March 2009, police constable Faisal Jan Khan stopped a suicide bomber at the Police Special Branch’s gate in Sitara market G-7. He saved dozens of his colleagues working inside the building as the bomber failed to get past him.

Check posts aren’t meant to be the only deterrent — the two large truck-mounted explosive detectors that Pakistan imported from China at great cost are also stationed around Islamabad.  However, suicide bombers, explosives and gunmen still enter the city freely.

One would also think that the city would be better protected by virtue of the proximity of police officials to powerful decision makers — but extracting funds from the government is still a painful process.

Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti’s assassination in broad daylight was a painful reminder of the inadequacy of security in Islamabad. Why do high profile targets seem most vulnerable in the capital?

A senior police official requesting anonymity laughs when he is asked to comment on the notion that Islamabad looks like it is ‘better protected’ than other cities. “All this security… it is just a smokescreen, conjured to appease certain political interests,” he says.

The officer said that only 3,000 police personnel out of a total strength of 10,000 were available for operational duties including counter-terrorism and maintaining law and order. He added that over 1,000 policemen were tasked with clerical duties.

The security division of the police is responsible for the safety of all VVIPs, VIPs, diplomats, Judges of the Supreme Court and foreign delegations. Billions of rupees are being spent on the salaries and upkeep of FC and Rangers personnel.

However, the official said the security division was not using its resources well. “The security division is not able to make a justified division of the force according to its needs. There is simply too much political interference,” he says.

“FC and Rangers forces are a status symbol,” he adds. The official said these forces were used by those who had ‘political influence,’ and were allocated according to the whims of certain people in the Interior Ministry, the Presidency and Prime Minister’s Secretariat.

As a result, government officials who were not under any significant threat roamed around with a huge security detail while actual targets, like former Minister for Religious Affairs Hamid Saeed Kazmi, were without any security at all.

Kazmi was accompanied by only one police constable when he survived an assassination attempt in 2009. He escaped only because the constable sacrificed his life to save the minister. “I was not provided any security escort,” admitted the former religious minister in a National Assembly session recently.

Additionally, standard operating procedures (SOPs) for security are vague, or they are not followed at all. “People provided with proper security, like minorities minister Bhatti, were not willing to sacrifice their privacy,” says an official from the security division. “They were reluctant to follow instructions from their security head and wanted to keep their private life hidden from even their security detail,” he added. The official suggested that people under threat should be advised on how to best utilize their security cover.

However, where does the burden to take decisions really lie — on the person under threat, or his security head?

In manuals dealing with SOPs for VVIP and VIP security, it is stated that a security escort is bound to follow instructions only from its head and not the person they guard. It is the security detail’s responsibility to anticipate threats and warn the VIP of it, and make subsequent arrangements to counter the threat.

However, this practice is rarely followed in real life, and when the ‘target’ starts making decisions, things become risky. “Bhatti tried to keep his actual residence secret from his security escort which cost him dearly in the end,” says a police official close to the investigation into the assassination.

Apart from the lapse in following SOPs, security officials admit that they are poorly trained in counter-terrorism. “Whatever little we have learned we learned in the field,” says a police constable standing guard at a picket.

Senior Superintendent of Police (Operations) Tahir Alam Khan admits that police personnel were too stressed to find enough time for specialised training in counterterrorism. In addition, desperately needed recruitments in the capital police were on a halt for over two years due to political interference. The police also lack modern gadgetry to help them trace perpetrators of terrorist activities. More than 90 per cent of the budget allocated for security forces is consumed in salaries, says an officer deputed at the headquarters of the police.

On the other hand, terrorists are not only more motivated now, they are better trained, says an official of the special branch. “Our forces also need to be taught about different  ideologies that terrorist adhere to — because a majority of the police were found to be sympathetic toward people involved in Lal Masjid during the military operation against them,” he said. He added that cases like Salmaan Taseer’s murder also caused policemen to have mixed feelings about the killer.

Police officers say their problems are being compounded by the Criminal Justice System which is serving the interests of terrorists and miscreants.

‘Ninety per cent of alleged terrorists freed by the courts never return to their homes. They go back to join their terrorist organisations,” says an intelligence official. He adds that these suspects were released by the courts because of ‘insufficient evidence’ but they were actually established terrorists.

The official said these terrorists take refuge in madrassas, which are becoming increasingly difficult to monitor. He recommended changes to the Anti-Terrorism Act and Evidence Act to address the changed scenario of terrorism, they stressed equally on regulating religious seminaries.

But accordingly to security officials, unless the entire security system is revamped, the criminal justice system is improved and political influence is decreased… better security for the twin cities is nothing more than a dream.

Maulana Azam Tariq, 2003

A member of the National Assembly and chief of the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, Tariq was assassinated by unidentified gunmen in Islamabad on October 6, 2003.

Pervez Musharraf, 2003

Former President Musharraf was attacked twice in 2003 — the first attempt on his life took place on December 14, 2003 as a bomb exploded near his convoy in Rawalpindi. He was attacked again by car bombs on December 25, also in Rawalpindi.

Pervez Musharraf, 2007

The former president was targeted again on July 6, 2007, when someone fired a submachine gun at his aircraft in Rawalpindi.

Benazir Bhutto, 2007

Former prime minister and PPP leader Benzair Bhutto was killed in a shooting and suicide bombing on December 27, 2007 as she left a campaign rally in Liaquat Park in Rawalpindi.

Mushtaq Baig, 2008

Army medical officer Lt General Mushtaq Baig was killed in Rawalpindi in a suicide attack on February 25, 2008.

Yousuf Raza Gilani, 2008

The prime minister’s convoy was fired at on September 3, 2008, as the car was on its way to collect Gilani from Islamabad airport.

Ameer Faisal Alavi, 2008

A high-ranking army official, Major General (R) Ameer Faisal Alavi was gunned down in Islamabad on

November 19, 2008. Alavi was the former head of the Army’s Elite Commando Force.

Hamid Saeed Kazmi, 2009

The then-religious affairs minister was attacked by unknown gunmen yards away from his office on September 2, 2009. Kazmi survived the attack.

Moinudin Ahmed, 2009

Brigadier Moinudin Ahmed was killed by gunmen who fired at his Army jeep in Islamabad on October 22, 2009.

Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad, 2010

Awami Muslim League Chief Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad was wounded in an assassination attempt as gunmen fired at his vehicle outside his party’s election office on February 8 2010.

Salman Taseer, 2011

Punjab Governor Salman Taseer was gunned down by his own guard in Islamabad on January 4, 2011. Taseer was actively protesting against the blasphemy law.

Shahbaz Bhatti, 2011

Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti was shot in his car as he left his home in Islamabad on March 2, 2011. Bhatti had confessed that he feared for his life.

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, March 13th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>In memoriam: NA body proposes monument for Bhatti</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/131935/in-memoriam-na-body-proposes-monument-for-bhatti</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/131935/in-memoriam-na-body-proposes-monument-for-bhatti#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 13 Mar 11 04:33:12 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[peer.muhammad]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=131935</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[NA standing committee on minorities’ affairs proposes construction of ‘interfaith harmony monument’ at murder...]]>
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				<![CDATA[To pay respects to the slain minorities affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti, the National Assembly standing committee on minorities’ affairs on Saturday proposed the construction of an ‘interfaith harmony monument’ at the murder site.


The meeting was held at the parliament house, where the committee adopted a resolution condemning the minister’s murder, with minority lawmaker Mahesh Kumar Mallani in the chair.

The parliamentarians demanded strict action against the plotters and perpetrators of Bhatti’s assassination.

“Recognising the innumerable contributions and sacrifices of the Christian community for Pakistan, especially their commitment to education, health and social justice, we, the members of the standing committee on minorities’ affairs, condemn the cold-blooded murder of the minister,” said the resolution, passed by the committee.

The committee expressed its deepest sympathies with the family of the late Bhatti in particular and to the Christian community in general. The resolution said that the political parties, media, civil society and all institutions of the state should join hands to exclude and reject the dark forces of obscurantism in our midst that threaten Pakistan.

The committee paid tribute to the late minister terming him a true patriot, who stood by Quaid-e-Azam’s vision of a tolerant nation where communities belonging to different faiths freely practice their religion.

Members of the committee urged the government to conduct a judicial inquiry into the incident, expose the murderers and give them exemplary punishment.

The panel also recommended that Shahbaz Bhatti be conferred with the highest award of courage and peace in the country and called for the formation of an interfaith commission dedicated to his vision and commitment for an ongoing interfaith dialogue.

The committee also urged the government to take immediate steps to protect minorities and to form a commission to examine all policies that discriminate against them.

The standing committee was briefed by the officials of the ministry of minorities’ affairs on the scholarships awarded to students from minority communities during the year 2009-10.

Giving a break-up for each province, the committee was informed that out of thousands of applications by minority students, 5,705 were found eligible.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 13th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Christian village sees rising tensions</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/131533/pakistan-christian-village-sees-rising-tensions</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/131533/pakistan-christian-village-sees-rising-tensions#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 12 Mar 11 07:38:07 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[afp]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=131533</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Christians say they are feeling more insecure after the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti.]]>
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				<![CDATA[In the Pakistani Christian hamlet that buried its most famous resident last week - the assassinated minister for minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti - locals say religious intolerance is giving way to rising tensions.

Khushpur village has been a base for the struggle against religious suppression for more than a century and remains a rare example of Muslims and Christians in rural Pakistan living harmoniously alongside one another.

But since the killings this year of two senior politicians who spoke out against strict Islamic blasphemy laws, the tiny Christian community that forms part of the country's three per cent non-Muslim population is feeling increasingly insecure.

"My best friend Aamir is Muslim. We studied and played together, he even goes with me to the church. But now we are scared of this increasing tension. It is killing both communities," said 22-year-old villager Shahid Samuel.

Minority affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti, 42, an outspoken campaigner against Pakistan's Islamic blasphemy laws that carry the death penalty, was killed by Taliban militants as he left his family home in Islamabad last week.

For his funeral black flags flew atop the mud and brick houses of Khushpur, his home village, in which 150 Muslims form the minority among the 5,000-strong Christian population.

Controversy over the blasphemy law, which punishes inflammatory comments on the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), flared late last year over the case of a poor Punjabi Christian woman, Aasia Bibi, who was sentenced to death over the charge.

Bibi's defenders say that like many other victims of the law, she was wrongly prosecuted because of a petty village dispute. Bhatti defended Bibi, just like Punjab provincial governor Salman Taseer who was assassinated for the same reason in January by one of his own bodyguards.

Taseer's killer has since been feted by legions of fans -- their loud defence of the blasphemy law underscoring rising religious feeling across the country.

"This is personal enmity which is being settled under the blasphemy law and it is increasing now," said 65-year-old villager Emmanuel, wearing a blue turban and holding a hookah waterpipe. "We Christians and Muslims never thought in the past that these things would create distance between us. This has really increased tension among the communities which is not good for the country and our society."

Muhammad Ghufran Arshad, a Muslim man from Khushpur who dug the graves for Bhatti and the rest of his family, said that until the minister's death he had never heard of Bibi.

"We are living together in this village since childhood. We respect them and help them in all affairs of life," he said.

Muddy trails bogged with stinking irrigation water and lined with fields where farmers with bull carts harvest wheat and sugar-cane, abruptly end at an intricate colonial red-brick church and missionary school building.

Founded during British rule in 1903 by a Roman Catholic priest, the village has long fought for religious freedoms.

Unlike most Christian enclaves in the central Punjab region, Khushpur's community is relatively wealthy and highly educated, producing doctors, engineers and teachers, as well as its minority rights advocates.

Roman Catholic Bishop John Joseph shot himself in 1998 in protest against the blasphemy laws and is also buried here, as is Father George Ibrahim, who fought for a Christian school and was killed in 2003.

Pakistani Christians are observing 40 days mourning for Bhatti. But the government has resisted calls from the international community to amend the blasphemy law, saying it has no plans to do so.

"After the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, the Christians are very sad and angry, it has hurt their hearts and they are now feeling unsafe in this country," said local Jacob Paul. "They feel that they will be suppressed here forever. It is a common thought over here that as long as this blasphemy law exists, their lives are not out of danger and the fuelled tensions can grip them at any time."]]>
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			<title>Opening the debate: ‘Politicians to discuss misuse of blasphemy law’</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/131525/rehman-malik-sees-accord-on-blasphemy-law</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/131525/rehman-malik-sees-accord-on-blasphemy-law#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 12 Mar 11 06:10:25 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[reuters]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=131525</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Interior minister says misuse of law being taken into account.]]>
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				<![CDATA[Politicians should be able to reach a cross-party accord to end misuse of the blasphemy law, based on proposals made by Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said on Friday.


The comments by Malik were the clearest sign yet of the government’s attempts to reduce tension over the blasphemy law, which has become a bitterly divisive issue in the country.

Former Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and Minister for Minorities’ Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, were assassinated this year after they called for amendments to the blasphemy law.

Malik told Reuters in an interview party leaders would meet and try to reach a consensus on the law, as proposed by Fazl.

“Its misuse is being, of course, taken into account and the party leaders are going to sit together as proposed by Maulana Fazlur Rehman ... and I hope this matter can be thrashed out, whenever this meeting takes place,” he said.

Fazl has been a vocal defender of the blasphemy law. However, a local newspaper quoted him as saying last week that “if a law is being misused against minorities, we are ready to discuss this.”

Malik declined to answer a question on whether politicians would discuss amendments to the law, or simply introduce measures to prevent its misuse, saying this would be a collective decision and he would abide by the consensus.

He added Fazl’s proposals are likely to gain support, without giving details. “Everybody, I think, will follow him in this connection.”

Asked whether this meant the PPP had resolved its differences with him, Malik said, “he has always favoured and taken the side of the Pakistan Peoples Party … He is a great friend of mine, he is a great friend of the president, he is a great lover of democracy so you can draw the inference that there is nothing wrong.”

The PPP-led government has been accused of appeasing the religious right after Taseer was shot by his own bodyguard in Islamabad. The man who confessed to his killing was celebrated as a hero, and the religious right organised large protests to insist there could be no change to the blasphemy law.

The government responded by promising the laws would stand, while Malik was quoted by the media as saying that if someone insulted Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), he, too, would shoot him.

Asked about that comment, Malik said, “Nobody would like to show disrespect to our Prophet. I said the bullet of law should be utilised for such actions. I was misinterpreted in that particular statement.”

He said the government condemned the assassination of the two men. “Nobody has the right to take anybody’s life.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 13th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>A reverential hush for Shahbaz Bhatti</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/130759/a-reverential-hush-for-shahbaz-bhatti</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/130759/a-reverential-hush-for-shahbaz-bhatti#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 10 Mar 11 19:43:00 +0500</pubDate>
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				<![CDATA[express]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Sindh]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=130759</guid>
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				<![CDATA[The congregation at St Patrick’s Cathedral prayed for Shahbaz Bhatti.]]>
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				<![CDATA[Heads bent in prayer at St Patrick’s Cathedral on Thursday evening for Shahbaz Bhatti, the federal minister for minorities’ affairs who was assassinated in Islamabad on March 2.


“Shahbaz Bhatti was a very active member of the community,” said Fr Saleh Diego. “Being a minister for minorities, he sought to bring unity and solidarity among members of all faiths.”

Banners by the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), the Catholic Sunday School ministry of the Karachi Archdiocese and St Paul’s Parish were placed outside the church building, paying tribute to Bhatti’s services. The NCJP banner stated, ‘Provide protection to Pakistani Christians’ and highlighted the mood of many at the memorial service. Parishoner Flora had never met Bhatti in person but regularly read about his work in The Christian Voice. “I come to this church every day but I don’t feel safe,” she said. “The discrimination against Christians will increase because now there is no minister for minorities’ affairs. We’re afraid of wearing dresses and wear shalwar kameez and dupattas instead. We can speak in English in Bohri Bazaar, but outside … you know, we speak broken Urdu.”

According to Flora, many Christian families are emigrating because of the law and order situation in the city. Sister Barbara Ann agreed: “Everyone who has the means would like to emigrate to greener pastures. Muslims are emigrating too.”

Even though her family does not live in Pakistan, Sr Ann said she was there to serve the country. “I want Pakistan to be the country that Quaid-e-Azam envisaged. That is the ideal and that is what we pray for.”

“I knew of Shahbaz Bhatti by reputation,” she said. “He had very good principles and values, and he worked not only for the rights of the well-to-do, but for everyone. There are very few people like that.”

The pews were full by the start of the service. An NCJP member estimated that at least 600 people were in attendance, given that the cathedral’s capacity was 800.

The service opened with the Archbishop of Karachi Evarist Pinto’s arrival and the recitation of a hymn. A short introduction of Bhatti followed, which hailed his services to the community and minorities. “When he took oath as the federal minister in 2008, he made Pakistani Christians proud,” the pastor said. “He proved that Christians love Pakistan and are continuously striving to make Pakistan proud.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 11th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti memorial: 'If we are silent, we allow evil to win'</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/130472/bhatti-memorial-if-we-are-silent-we-allow-evil-to-win</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/130472/bhatti-memorial-if-we-are-silent-we-allow-evil-to-win#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Thu, 10 Mar 11 08:11:42 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[afp]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=130472</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Hussain Haqqani and other US leaders plead for religious tolerance at memorial service for Shahbaz Bhatti.]]>
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				<![CDATA[Pakistani and US leaders pleaded Wednesday for religious tolerance at a memorial service in Washington for Pakistan's sole Christian government minister Shahbaz Bhatti who was killed in broad daylight.

Husain Haqqani, Pakistan's ambassador to Washington, said he decided to hold a service for Bhatti at the embassy as there was an "unconscionable silence" by many Pakistanis who in their hearts are respectful of other faiths.

"When Shahbaz Bhatti was murdered and we remain silent, some of us have died with him," Haqqani told the service attended by US officials and Pakistani expatriates. "If we are silent, we allow evil to win," Haqqani said. "It is unacceptable, it is un-Islamic, it is not what Pakistan was founded for, it is not what Pakistanis living abroad can be proud of as Pakistanis and -- if I may use a term that has been abused in Pakistan -- it is blasphemy."

Bhatti, the minister for minorities' affairs, advocated reforms to blasphemy laws which critics say are used to persecute non-Muslims. Bhatti was shot at least 25 times on March 2 as he was leaving his mother's home.

Punjab's governor Salmaan Taseer, another critic of abuse of the blasphemy law, was shot dead less than two months earlier by an assassin whom well-wishers showered with petals during a court appearance.

Bhatti told AFP after Taseer's assassination that he knew he had become a top target but was prepared to die to defend minorities from abuse.

Farahnaz Ispahani, a member of Pakistan's parliament, praised Bhatti's work on the blasphemy law and other efforts including trying to restrict hate speech.

"We are fighting today to protect our great nation from bigoted extremists who want to silence every voice that believes in inclusion," said Ispahani, who is Haqqani's wife. "We may not shout but we are strong, and unlike the murderers and the assassins we are on the right side of history and on the right side of the Holy Book. And we are not afraid," she said.

Maria Otero, the US under secretary of state for democracy and global affairs, said that the United States shared Bhatti's "pursuit of a world of tolerance."

"We believe that it is imperative to uphold religious freedom, not only in accordance with international law but also as an essential pillar in the foundation for global peace," Otero said.]]>
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			<title>Memorial service: ‘The blood of the martyrs calls out’</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/129631/memorial-service-%e2%80%98the-blood-of-the-martyrs-calls-out%e2%80%99</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/129631/memorial-service-%e2%80%98the-blood-of-the-martyrs-calls-out%e2%80%99#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Mar 11 18:25:46 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[saba.imtiaz]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category><category><![CDATA[Sindh]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=129631</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Shazia Marri, Waseem Akhtar and prominent people from society attend service for Shahbaz Bhatti.]]>
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				<![CDATA[As organisers filled the grounds of the Holy Trinity Cathedral, a song in memory of federal minister for minority affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, who was assassinated on March 2, belted from the speakers.


“Phir lo maseehon aik aur vaar hoga, Urta hua Shahbaz bhi shikar ho gaya.” (Look Christians, one more has been killed. The soaring Shahbaz has been killed.)

The memorial service for Bhatti took place on Tuesday evening, and was organised by the Diocese of Karachi and Balochistan. A number of civil society members were seen at the event, as well as Pakistan Peoples Party’s Shazia Marri, Waqar Mehdi, Najmi Alam and Kaiser Bengali and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s Waseem Akhtar.

At least two hundred people attended the service, many of whom had not known Bhatti but recognised his services to the community. Kausar Naseem John said, “There is a degree of fear, but that was always there. However, we are free in this country.”

A flyer was distributed prior to the event by the Christian Khidmat Tehreek, asking politicians and the media to use the word ‘shaheed’ (martyr) to preface mentions of Bhatti’s name. They may have been comforted somewhat knowing that all politicians at the event did so.

“He formed the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance at my brother-in-law’s house,” recalled Anjum Sohail. “What happened was wrong. He was a good person, and he never had an air of pride about being a federal minister.”

The event slowly descended into a haze of speeches delivered at ear-splitting volumes, but there were moments of calm and introspection as well. Pastors prayed for Bhatti’s family. Bishop Sadiq Daniel recited passages from the Bible that spoke of God’s displeasure at taking another human’s life, and stressed inter-faith harmony. He recalled the murder of Abel at the hands of his brother Cain, and recalled God’s words from the Bible - “Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground!”

“In the same way,” Daniel said, “the blood of the martyred Shahbaz Bhatti and that of other martyrs calls out to God from His earth.”

Daniel said, “I believe that people from every school of thought and political party have felt sorrow at Bhatti’s death, and Christians have been encouraged by the memorial service organised by the MQM.”

Other speakers at the event included Nuzhat Williams, the president of the Young Women’s Christian Association, journalist Qudsia Qadri and Citizens for Democracy’s Umar Farooq. Marri and Rashid Rabbani spoke of the contributions given by the PPP to Pakistan and the need for Pakistan to be united against terrorism. Marri’s speech received resounding applause when she mentioned the services of the Christian community in the field of education, “which made Pakistan what it is today.”

Waseem Akhtar struck a more personal note, recalling his interaction with Bhatti in the National Assembly (NA). “It has been three years since I’ve been in the NA and honestly, I really don’t know what people are talking about there,” he said. “Everyone has their own personal interests … someone is lobbying for their business, or their brother, or a ministry. Even if Bhatti went up to the prime minister with papers to sign, it was always for someone else’s problems.”

Akhtar recalled Bhatti as a “self-made, brave, good-hearted man who was completely free from feudal airs and pride.” But while Marri and Rabbani said the country was united, Akhtar was more realistic about the state of affairs, pointing to the evident polarisation in society and how “we have become spectators”. Another attendee, Saleem Shahzad, said, “There was a sense of fear before, it is still prevalent today and will continue to be there.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 9th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti murder: Christian Lawyers Association speaks out</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/129245/bhatti-murder-christian-lawyers-association-speaks-out</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/129245/bhatti-murder-christian-lawyers-association-speaks-out#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Tue, 08 Mar 11 06:17:52 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[rana.tanveer]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Punjab]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=129245</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The protesters carried placards and banners bearing inscriptions demanding the early arrest of the murderer.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[Christian Lawyers Association in Pakistan (CLAP) held a protest rally condemning the assassination of minority affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti on Monday. Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president Asma Jahangir also participated in the rally from the Lahore High Court (LHC) to the Punjab Assembly.


The protesters carried placards and banners bearing inscriptions demanding the early arrest of the murderer and for providing protection to minority communities. Nearly two dozen Christian lawyers participated in the rally along with civil society members and demanded that minority communities be provided with better security.

CLAP president Akbar Munawar Durrani told The Express Tribune that Ms Jahangir had had to leave the protest in the middle to attend a her case fixed before the Supreme Court (SC). Durrani said that Lahore High Court Bar Association (LHCBA) president Asghar Ali Gill was also appearing before the LHC and had been unable to attend the rally.

“Usually the LHCBA and Lahore Bar Association (LBA) show their support by boycotting court proceedings. Their absence shows disregard for the Christian community,” said a protestor who chose to remain anonymous.

Addressing the rally, Durrani said that the murder of Shahbaz Bhatti was a glaring reminder of terrorism, sectarianism and religious extremism.

He said that the murder was a warning, not only for the Christian community, but also for other minorities in the country. He said the assassination of the minorities affairs minister had sent a message that religious extremism had taken root in the country and that the government was unable to ensure protection of citizens’ basic rights. Durrani said that minority communities were being pushed into a corner.

CLAP members demanded that the assassins of Shahbaz Bhatti be arrested as soon as possible. “All discriminatory laws should be abolished,” he said.

“Printing literature against minorities should be banned and propaganda against their religious books needs to come to an end,” he said, adding that the government needed to introduce proper legislation against hate speech targeting minority communities.

“There should be legal action against clerics who issue edicts declaring that members of a minority community deserve to be killed,” Durrani said. Advocate Robinson George Nicholson submitted a resolution in the LHCBA for deliberations over these measures. LHCBA secretary Arshad Malik Awan has fixed a hearing for Tuesday and called a general house meeting of the LHCBA to approve its findings and recommendations.

“Bhatti’s murder has shown that people who speak for minority communities are under threat and can be killed without reason,” Nicholson said. He said that the latest murder had brought stigma to the state and was an insult to the rule of law.

The resolution also demanded Interior Minister Rehman Malik’s resignation.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 8th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>The unfolding war</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/129045/the-unfolding-war</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/129045/the-unfolding-war#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 11 18:25:54 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[dr.akmal.hussain]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=129045</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[It is time for the democratic government and security apparatus to get their act together to defend Pakistan.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[The cold-blooded assassination of Minister Shahbaz Bhatti, following that of Governor Salmaan Taseer, has made apparent the modus operandi of the Taliban and al Qaeda, in this, the latest phase of their war strategy: Target a prominent politician who explicitly opposes their extremist ideology on humanitarian grounds, pass a fatwa and then execute with telling efficiency. The objective is to demonstrate that it is the ideology of the Taliban and al Qaeda, rather than the Constitution of Pakistan, which defines what is acceptable. Equally, it is they who determine the guilt of an errant individual and the punishment to be given, rather than Pakistan’s judiciary.

Conversely, through these assassinations the extremists are attempting to delegitimise the government by showing that it has failed to protect the lives of its leaders, let alone ordinary citizens. What makes this failure endemic to the existing institutional structure is that organs of the state itself, which are supposed to provide security to citizens, are undermining it. This is illustrated by the statement of the advocate general of Balochistan, Salahuddin Mengal, before the Supreme Court recently: “We are recovering dead bodies, day in and day out, as the Frontier Constabulary and police are lifting people in broad daylight at will, but we are helpless.” It is not surprising, therefore, that the Supreme Court in a recent court order observed, “…the law and order situation is required to be tackled in accordance with the Constitution and it is the duty of the state, including the federal as well as provincial governments, to protect the lives and properties of the citizens in terms of Article 9 (Security of Person) without any discrimination”.

The relationship between the state and citizens in the context of security is fraught because of another factor: The widespread perception that Pakistan’s premier Intelligence Service (ISI) treats with kid gloves some of the deadliest extremist groups who were earlier nurtured as ‘strategic assets’.

What then is the war strategy of the Taliban and al Qaeda? It is clear from their declarations as much as their systematic actions that they seek to capture the Pakistani state, or as large a part of it as they can. Their strategy is informed by the classic principle of guerilla warfare: Undermine the will to fight of the military, the government and their civilian support base. They have attempted to achieve these goals in three phases: The first was to capture significant swathes of Pakistan’s territory, initially in Fata and then the settled areas of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. In this phase, the extremists were driven back by the Pakistani military in what is regarded as one of the quickest and most efficient combat operations in the history of modern counter-insurgency. The second phase of the Taliban and al Qaeda strategy was to spread out to the major urban centres and establish sleeper cells there. At the same time, gun and suicide bomber attacks were mounted against key military, intelligence and police installations to undermine morale. The third phase consisted of assassinating some of Pakistan’s key political leaders. First, Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, then Salmaan Taseer and now Shahbaz Bhatti. This was combined with organising a propaganda apparatus with a national outreach to capture ideological space. This was done by winning allies amongst elements in the media, madrassas, selected sectarian groups and some of the mainstream religious parties.

The danger to the state and society of Pakistan lies in three eventualities: (a) Continued violence reaches a point where governance is seen to collapse. This would create the possibility of a military managed formation of a ‘national government’ dominated by right-wing parties, with a representation for the Taliban. (b) Widespread mayhem through simultaneous terrorist attacks in key cities, as a prelude to an extremist counter-revolution. (c) A Mumbai-style attack against an Indian city which could trigger a devastating war between Pakistan and India.

The writing is on the wall. It is time for the democratic government and the security apparatus to get their act together to defend Pakistan and its people.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 8th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Candlelight vigil: ‘Bhatti, you are still with us’</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128699/candlelight-vigil-%e2%80%98bhatti-you-are-still-with-us%e2%80%99</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128699/candlelight-vigil-%e2%80%98bhatti-you-are-still-with-us%e2%80%99#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 11 06:02:54 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[azam.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128699</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Christian activists hold a memorial for the slain minister at the site of his murder.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[Wearing black bands around their head and arms, Christian activists observed a candlelight vigil in memory of the slain Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti on Sunday.


The memorial was held here in sector I-8/3, at the site where the minster was gunned down last Wednesday.

“Many of us are here with crushed hearts but we know that you [Bhatti] are still here with us,” said Pastor Stephan Barnard, as he prayed for the deceased minister.

“Often people blame  God for the sadness of the world and reject any possible hope that could be spoken into it.

However, in the realities of a broken world with broken people, the ultimate hope and answer is God’s grace, which is free to all, at even the lowest point of despair.”

Meanwhile, scores of Muttahida Quami Movement Christian workers joined the memorial and started chanting slogans like “Bhatti teray khoon se inqlaab aay ga” (Bhatti, your blood will bring a revolution).

“Tum kitney bhatti maro gey, har ghar se bhatti niklay ga,” (You might have killed Bhattis but his mission carries on) said a young mother, Aasia Bibi, at the vigil.

“My son will follow your mission,” she said, as her three-year-old son, Yashwa Masih, slept in her arms. “Whenever we asked him for help he never let us down. How can we ever forget him?” she added.

Ishtiaq Masih, also at the candlelight vigil, said, “Bhatti did not care about our status and treated everyone equally.”

He added, “Even though I am a sanitary worker, it was never difficult for me to approach him.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 7th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>No mention of Shahbaz Bhatti in Sunday church services</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128725/no-mention-of-shahbaz-bhatti-in-sunday-church-services</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128725/no-mention-of-shahbaz-bhatti-in-sunday-church-services#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 11 04:55:51 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[saba.imtiaz]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128725</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Most of the banners for him were put up by the MQM.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[On a quiet Sunday morning, Rt Rev Sadiq Daniel asked the congregation of the Holy Trinity Cathedral to pray for Pakistan, its political leadership and the country’s future.


But there was no mention of the late federal minister for minorities’ affairs, Shahbaz Bhatti, who was assassinated on March 2.

Helen Turner, who attended the service at the cathedral, said, “I thought they would mention him, no? After all, he was with the Christians and the minorities.” No special prayers were offered this Sunday for the Catholic Bhatti in any of the other major churches in Karachi, including St Patrick’s Cathedral and St Andrew’s Church.

“They must have mentioned him in Thursday’s service,” said Eugene Romeo. “On the first Sunday of every month there is a special prayer for the country, for the Christian community, for politicians, for the deprived — regardless of their faith — and for the sick.”

While the Christians in the Punjab managed to come out in huge numbers - almost 15,000 people attended Bhatti’s funeral - the same numbers have not been seen in Karachi yet. Even the banners condemning Bhatti’s assassination outside all major churches have been placed by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

When asked why he was not mentioned in Sunday’s English service, Rev Shahid Sabir said, “We will offer a prayer in the Urdu service. Special prayers have been scheduled for March 8.” St Patrick’s Cathedral and Holy Trinity Cathedral will both hold memorial prayers for Bhatti this week.

On Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, urged that the “moving sacrifice” of Bhatti, inspire “courage and commitment to strive for religious freedom for all men”.

Security is undoubtedly a concern for Christians, as churches have little to no presence of law-enforcement personnel outside their places of worship. On Friday evening, a sole police officer sat near the gate of the Holy Trinity Church. He said he had only been deployed because there was a wedding inside. Saddar SP Irshad Ali Raza Saher said, “We generally have a security presence at churches, especially during the time of worship.”

“The area police did call,” said Rev Sabir, “but there is no appropriate security.”

“We cannot raise an army to protect all the churches,” says Bishop Ijaz Inayat. “Why should we ask for security? It is the state’s duty to provide security. The government has failed in its duty and it should quit.”

The Christians and their places of worship have been attacked a number of times, including in 2004 when a bomb blast took place outside the Pakistan Bible Society. In 2010 and 2009, churches were vandalised in different areas of the city.

“Our society is numb and our conscience is dead,” Bishop Inayat said. “Discrimination has been going on for decades, and the victimisation has increased because of the blasphemy law.”

While Rev Sabir said Bhatti was not as active among the Christians in Karachi, others begged to differ. “He came to Karachi to condole my father’s death a few months ago,” recalled Victor Javed, a parishioner at St Jude’s Church in North Nazimabad’s DeSilva Town. “Even if he was not there in times of joy, he was always there in times of grief. He had a good character, and he would always personally offer condolences to families. There have been a large number of prayers and services for him in our church.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 7th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti’s relatives unlikely to replace him in NA</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128809/bhatti%e2%80%99s-relatives-unlikely-to-replace-him-in-na</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128809/bhatti%e2%80%99s-relatives-unlikely-to-replace-him-in-na#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 11 04:49:42 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[zia.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128809</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[President Zardari had initially suggested the idea.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[President Asif Ali Zardari’s desire to get one of the family members of slain minorities’ minister Shahbaz Bhatti elected on the National Assembly seat which fell vacant after his murder last week will remain unfulfilled because of electoral rules.


According to officials, regulations stipulate that the ‘selection’ on reserved seats is made from lists submitted by political parties to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) ahead of the general polls.

The ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had given the commission four names on reserved seats for minorities ahead of the 2008 elections. The parties get reserved seat in proportion to their strength of general members.

Bhatti, a die-hard party worker and a Roman Catholic, was at the top of the PPP list. He became an MNA and subsequently a minister.

The other three names were: Dr Khathomal Jeevan, a member of the Sindh Hindu community, while Micheal Javed and Khalid Gill, are both Christians.

Dr Jeevan was later elected as member of the Senate on PPP ticket.

Election rules say in case of death or resignation by any member from the reserved seats, the next on the list would automatically become his or her replacement.

According to this formula, Micheal Javed is the likely candidate to enter the National Assembly and Election Commission officials said that a notification in this regard is expected to be issued on Monday.

They, however, said the PPP might come up with new names if both Javed and Gill refuse the seat. This probability was ruled out by a ruling party member.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 7th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Should Rehman Malik resign?</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128658/should-rehman-malik-resign</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128658/should-rehman-malik-resign#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 11 04:37:30 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[editorial]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Editorial]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128658</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Malik is far from the only politician unwilling to consider resignation for dereliction of duty.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Like an unwanted guest who sits and chats well after dinner, Pakistani politicians can never figure out when they have overstayed their welcome. While resignations are fairly common in our politics, they are rarely an act of principle or acknowledgement of failure. Interior Minister Rehman Malik, who has overseen more disasters than most, has become a master of excuse-making and rationalisations. No matter what happens, he is always on hand to point out that it was someone else’s fault. Sometimes he may even be right but what is most galling is that, at a time when the country is in mourning, the last thing we need is a government grandee who seems affected not by the unfolding tragedy, but at the thought of losing his cushy job.

Malik indulged in a particularly crass form of blame-shifting in the wake of minority affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti’s murder. In defending his actions, or his inaction in providing sufficient security to Bhatti, he ended up blaming the late minister himself, saying that Bhatti had refused extra protection. That may well be true, but now was hardly the time to bring it up. Malik’s tone veered between defensiveness and belligerence, neither of which suited the sombre occasion. Instead, he should have declared that he would resign his position were an independent inquiry to find that he had not fulfilled his duties.

Sadly, Malik is far from the only politician unwilling to consider resignation for dereliction of duty or even on a point of principle. Just recently we have witnessed former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi launch a crusade against the government for its role in the Raymond Davis case. As is typical, he didn’t see the need to publicly speak out while he was still foreign minister, preferring to wait till he was stripped off his office. In fact, the history of Pakistan politics is one of leaders insisting that the buck doesn’t stop with them. They prefer to blame their failures on conspiracies hatched by their enemies. Even if they don’t resign, it would be refreshing to see a politician admit to a mistake occasionally.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 7th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti’s camouflage  was ‘an open secret’</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128811/bhatti%e2%80%99s-camouflage-was-%e2%80%98an-open-secret%e2%80%99</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128811/bhatti%e2%80%99s-camouflage-was-%e2%80%98an-open-secret%e2%80%99#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 11 04:27:43 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[umer.nangiana]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128811</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Minister evaded normal security and rarely used his own house.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Assassinated Minority Affairs Minister Shahbaaz Bhatti’s attempts to conceal his residence were an “open secret”, raising fresh questions about the failure of the government to provide security to the late cabinet member.


According to sources familiar with the matter, some of Bhatti’s security escort knew of his attempts to hide his residence, though the minister himself seemed to be comfortable with his own protection.

The minorities minister began to distrust his official security detail after the assassination of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer by one of his own guards for his opposition to abuses taking place in the name of the blasphemy law. The minister began to hide his place of residence.

“He had limited his visits to his house in sector I-8/3 and used to come for sleeping there only,” said one of his family members and a close friend who did not want to be named to The Express Tribune.

However, his friend conceded that his routine did not remain a well-kept secret.

A police official said that the assailants, while carrying out reconnaissance of the slain minister’s movements, would have easily come to know of his secret arrangement.

“He was so confident of his own arrangements that neither he nor his driver had bothered to keep a weapon with them or in the car,” said an official close to investigations.

Another police official said that over ninety per cent of the people under threat who are provided with state security try to keep their ‘private lives’ out of the purview of their ‘security’.

“They did not want their security escort to accompany them in their private life. For security details to work properly, they needed to compromise the private life,” he said.

Despite repeated reports and complaints by the security division of the police about this ‘behaviour’ of people under threat, the government had not taken any action to seek compliance from them nor are there any rules in this regard.

People responsible for the security of the slain minister, in this case the security division of police, had not taken any measures whatsoever to monitor his movement.

“After a thorough search, the police and law enforcement agencies had failed to locate a single closed-circuit camera on the route of the minister or the area concerned,” said an official.

This camera could possibly capture the footage of the car used by the attackers which would have made it easy for the police to trace it.

Officials said the white Suzuki Mehran, reportedly used in the attack, had not been found as yet. Earlier, through a witness, a clue was given to the police but the reported car registration number was found to be bogus.

Police were unable to arrest any suspect, sources said. They were also not able to get hold of the slain minister’s personal cell phone or the custody of his driver, they added.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 7th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>The Christians in our midst</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128661/the-christians-in-our-midst</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128661/the-christians-in-our-midst#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 11 04:24:56 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[amber.darr]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128661</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The greater tragedy is that we carry out our inhuman crimes in the name of Islam.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[A long time ago, I had read somewhere that one does not feel any pain when first hit by a bullet: The wound only begins to burn a few minutes later and, the longer it is left unattended, the greater becomes the pain. The news of the brutal murder of minister for minority affairs, the Catholic Shahbaz Bhatti, hit me like the proverbial bullet: It was around noon on March 2, that I first heard that Bhatti had been shot dead in Islamabad, minutes away from parliament house where he was due to attend a cabinet meeting. I was shocked, even outraged, but was still able to carry on with my work. As the day progressed, however, the initial shock gave way to an unexplained sense of unease and, by the evening, I found myself engulfed in a profound sorrow that threatened to paralyse my ability to think and act.

A part of me whispered that I was overreacting. After all, Pakistanis are killed almost daily, at times by American drones and, at others, by the brutalities of their own countrymen. What, then, was so different about Bhatti’s death that I mourned so deeply? Clearly, it was not personal association: I had never met the man and was not particularly acquainted with his views. It was rather the fact that a Christian had been killed at the hands of Muslims, ostensibly to safeguard the dignity of Islam, that raised questions in my mind, not only of the place of Pakistani Christians in our society, but also about our own claim to being Muslims.

My earliest memory of Pakistani Christians dates back to when I entered St. Joseph’s Convent in Karachi as a mere five-year-old. For the next 11 years I remember being coaxed, cajoled and urged to discover and achieve my highest potential, not just academically but as a human being. After my parents, it was the nuns and many Christian teachers at St Joseph’s who shaped and honed my mind, personality and character and gave me many of the values that I live by even today. It was through them that I received my earliest lessons in discipline, kindness and tolerance and it was through their example that I first learnt to forge bonds on the basis of a shared humanity, above and beyond the boundaries of religion.

My experience and memories are not unique. Innumerable Pakistani men and women have received, and continue to receive, their formative learning at the hands of dedicated Christians selflessly serving the cause of education throughout Pakistan, even in its remotest parts. Pakistani Muslims appear, however, to have chosen not to return the favour. At best we have remained indifferent to their condition and have tacitly accepted the social divide that has relegated Pakistani Christians and indeed, all other minorities, to the sidelines of Pakistan’s economic and cultural life. At other times, however, we have not even been quite so tolerant and have attacked and burnt their churches and places of worship, condemned them for blasphemy and, it seems, now we plan to kill them in cold blood.

The greater tragedy is that we carry out our inhuman crimes in the name of Islam, not realising that it is our limited understanding that forces us to focus on protecting Islam from imaginary slights rather than propagating its message of compassion, tolerance and humanity. Bhatti’s death is an open wound in the fabric of Pakistani society and the pain we feel in its wake would only increase unless the wound is attended to with many acts of genuine gratitude for the great debt that we, as Pakistanis, owe to our Christian, Parsi and Hindu communities for enriching our lives and our society. The ultimate cure for our anguish, however, only lies in our own realisation that, as Muslims, we are expected first and foremost to be good humans — everything else is secondary.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 7th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Pope lauds Bhatti's 'sacrifice' for religious freedom</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128545/pope-lauds-bhattis-sacrifice-for-religious-freedom</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128545/pope-lauds-bhattis-sacrifice-for-religious-freedom#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 06 Mar 11 12:16:32 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[afp]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128545</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Pope Benedict says Bhatti inspires &quot;courage and commitment to strive for religious freedom for all men.&quot;]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday expressed "great concern" over the crises in several African and Asian countries, mentioning Pakistan and Libya in particular.

Speaking after the weekly Angelus prayer in St Peter's Square at the Vatican, the head of the Roman Catholic Church urged that the "moving sacrifice" of Pakistan's murdered Catholic minorities minister, inspire "courage and commitment to strive for religious freedom for all men."

Shahbaz Bhatti, a vocal opponent of Pakistan's Islamic blasphemy law and promoter of interfaith dialogue, was shot dead in broad daylight in Islamabad on Wednesday.

Bhatti had defied death threats after the assassination of another political moderate who wanted to reform the legislation, which critics say is often misused to settle personal scores against vulnerable minorities.

"I follow with great concern the tensions in several countries in Africa and Asia in these days," the pope said in Italian.

Benedict then sent his thoughts and prayers to those caught up in the crisis in Libya, "where recent clashes have caused numerous deaths and a growing humanitarian crisis."

In his first official reaction to the crisis since the uprising against Libyan leader Moammar Qaddafi began, the pontiff said: "To all the victims and those who find themselves in distressing situations I send my prayers."

"I ask for help and aid for the affected peoples," Benedict said.

On Wednesday, the pope expressed his concern over the crisis to the head of the World Food Programme in a private audience at the Vatican, after WFP head Josette Sheeran warned him of the growing numbers of refugees fleeing violence.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti assassination: Police unable to get hold of minister’s cell phone, driver</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128444/bhatti-assassination-police-unable-to-get-hold-of-minister%e2%80%99s-cell-phone-driver</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128444/bhatti-assassination-police-unable-to-get-hold-of-minister%e2%80%99s-cell-phone-driver#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 06 Mar 11 04:44:36 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[umer.nangiana]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128444</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Witness says a person resembling the police sketch was seen sitting in a white car.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Police officials probing the killing of Minority Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti have not been able to access either the minister’s cell phone or his driver that could together or individually help yield valuable clues.


Sources told The Express Tribune that police were able to trace and recover a Suzuki Mehran, a vehicle suspected of being the one used by unidentified assailants in the ambush. The registration number of the car was also found bogus on inquiry, officials said.

A senior police official denied it could be the same car used by the militants. However, sources said the engine and chasis numbers of the vehicle did not match the registration number, which was bogus. The car was actually registered in Lahore and the bogus number was from Lahore too.

Upon seeing the suspect’s sketch released by the police, a witness informed the police that a person resembling the sketch was seen sitting in a white Suzuki Mehran in Satellite Town Rawalpindi approximately three hours before the incident.

Sources said the car was found abandoned in the same area. However, the police did not officially confirm the claim and some officials even denied that the car was recovered.

A police official confirmed receiving information on a suspected car from a witness but maintained the registration number conveyed was found to be bogus.

Bhatti’s cell phone was still in the custody of his family and the driver had gone with the casket to the slain minister’s native village to attend the burial. “The minister’s family had not raised any suspicions over the character of their most trusted driver,” said a police official.

However, he confirmed that there were contradictions in the statements made by the driver Gul Sher. “There was also difference in the statements of witnesses and the driver over the account of the incident,” he said.

“Some witnesses said three gunmen had disembarked from their vehicle to shoot at the minister while Sher maintained it was only one,” the official added. Also, the driver stated he had saved his life by ducking down when the shooter fired at the wind screen of the car.

This claim was also challenged by certain witnesses who stated that Gul Sher had disembarked from the minister’s vehicle on seeing the gunman before the latter had opened fire. “There were many questions that only Sher could answer,” said an official close to the investigations.

He added that the driver would be questioned by the police on his return from Faisalabad. The probe team also wanted the custody of the cell phone used by the slain minister, as they believe the call record could lead to certain helpful clues. “We will politely request the family for access to the the cell phone when they return,” said a police official.

Earlier, an attempt to extract information on possible clues from the under custody self-confessed assassin of the former governor of Punjab, Salman Taseer, remained futile. “Considering his emotional behaviour, the police thought he could provide some useful information if provoked,” said a source.

Officials of law enforcement agencies and police had also picked up two clerics of local mosques for questioning. They were asked if any of their seminary students was missing or was on leave. Police were also interested to know if they were keeping any guests at the mosque or the affiliated seminaries.

Eleven personnel of the Frontier Constabulary and police in the security escort of the slain minister were also questioned but no signs of their possible involvement could be traced.

Since the time of the incident, more than 30 people including vendors, passersby and others were picked up and subsequently interrogated to obtain a true account of the assassination of the minister.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 6th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Zardari says extremism poses existentialist threat</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128461/zardari-says-extremism-poses-existentialist-threat</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128461/zardari-says-extremism-poses-existentialist-threat#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sun, 06 Mar 11 04:27:19 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[express]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128461</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[President calls Bhatti and Taseer victims of increasing intolerance and polarisation in Pakistani society.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[President Asif Ali Zardari has called the slain Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, and the former governor of Punjab Salmaan Taseer, victims of increasing intolerance and polarisation in Pakistani society.


In a letter published in The Washington Post on March 6, Zardari said the “assassinations serve as a warning that the battle between extremism and moderation in Pakistan affects the success of the civilised world’s confrontation with the terrorist menace.”

Calling the increasing intolerance an existentialist threat, Zardari said “a small but increasingly belligerent minority is intent on undoing the very principles of tolerance upon which our nation was founded in 1947.”

He resolved, however, the nation “will not be intimidated, nor will we retreat.”  “It is not only the future of Pakistan that is at stake but peace in our region and possibly the world,” he added.

Admitting that extremism threatens to unravel the country, Zardari said “the religious fanaticism behind [the] assassinations is a tinderbox poised to explode across Pakistan. The embers are fanned by the opportunism of those who seek advantages in domestic politics by violently polarising society.”

Rebuking Pakistan’s allies for “[losing] patience and [piling] pressure on those of us who are already on the front lines of what is undeniably a long war,” Zardari said, “some well-meaning critics tend to forget the distinction between courage and foolhardiness.”

Singling out the United States in the letter, he said both countries “must avoid political incidents that could further inflame tensions and provide extremists or opportunists with a pretext for destabilising our fledgling democracy.”

Commenting on the Raymond Davis case, Zardari said the individual’s folly has single-handedly jeopardised the image of  the United States amongst Pakistanis. Assuring that the case would be adjudicated in accordance with the law, he sternly states “it is in no one’s interest to allow this matter to be manipulated and exploited to weaken the government of Pakistan and damage further the US image in our country.”

He also thrashed any proposition of cutting down development aid to Pakistan, saying such a threat is written “out of the playbook of America’s enemies, whose only result will be to undermine US strategic interests in South and Central Asia.”

“In an incendiary environment, hot rhetoric and dysfunctional warnings can start fires that will be difficult to extinguish,” Zardari concludes.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 6th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Will the moderates ever stand up?</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128166/will-the-moderates-ever-stand-up</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/128166/will-the-moderates-ever-stand-up#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 05 Mar 11 17:58:59 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[basil.nabi.malik]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=128166</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The moderates, although quite loud, have refused to stand up to tyranny, and expect others to do it for them.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[The assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti has given rise to the usual sentiments of denial, self-loathing, embarrassment and shame. The moderate sections of society have made plain their indignation for the murders taking place in the name of Islam, however, with that said; it is precisely these sections of society which have ensured that the religious right remains in a position to kill off all dissent without fear of any repercussions.

The moderate politicians in Pakistan have traditionally cowered down to the blackmailing of the religious right, for whom religion may very well be an article of clothing to be worn and taken off at will.

Additionally, the moderate population in and of itself has tremendously contributed to the state of affairs in Pakistan. They long ago willingly ceded to these extremists the exclusive license to deal with, direct, mould and regulate religious discourse within the country.

Furthermore, the moderates have allowed the menace of intolerance to increase in strength by remaining in a constant state of denial of their role and responsibility. They blame the religious right for spreading an extremist ideology, yet ignore the fact that they have contributed by refusing to rebuff the same and not offering any alternative. They blame the government for the current turmoil, yet gloss over the fact that it is their acts of tax evasion which have limited the efficient functioning and capacity building of government institutions, which would ultimately enable the government to fight terror more effectively. And finally, they will target the alleged basis of the country itself, stating that this is bound to happen in any country illogically created in the name of religion. They do this while ignoring the fact that the founding father was a secular man, and is that the utility and purpose of any country is determined by its citizens, not any warped historical narrative.

The moderates, although quite loud, have perpetually refused to stand up to tyranny, and amusingly expect others to do it for them. And when that doesn’t happen, they moan, pout and eventually seek to leave the country in a fit of rage and heartbreak. In fact, it is precisely this kind of selfishness and irresponsibility that has served as the bedrock of our degradation. If only it was realised that our collective salvation lies, not in shunning societal realities and insulating ourselves from the community itself, but rather in staying and initiating the process of reform by being the ‘change’ that we want to see in Pakistan. In this way, even if we aren’t able to change the whole of society, we would have at least brought a little bit of ‘change’ to it. And, surely, that is better than washing our hands, and perhaps our conscience, off our country and booking a flight to the UK.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 6th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Bhatti assassination: Scope of murder investigations widened</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127954/bhatti-assassination-scope-of-murder-investigations-widened</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127954/bhatti-assassination-scope-of-murder-investigations-widened#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 05 Mar 11 02:42:27 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[umer.nangiana]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=127954</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Taseer’s self-confessed killer, four FC soldiers being questioned in connection with the minister’s assassination.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[The scope of investigations into the assassination of slain Minorities Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti was widened to include Malik Mumtaz Qadri, the self-confessed killer of former governor of Punjab Salman Taseer, and the personnel of Bhatti’s security escort.


Officials of the Crime Investigation Department (CID) and members of the investigation team on Friday went to Adiala Jail to question Qadri after obtaining permission from a trial court.

Strongly suspecting the blasphemy controversy to be the motive behind the killing of the minister, investigators are looking for possible links between the two high-profile killings that are separated by less than two months.

No credible information came out from the interrogation of Qadri, however, and police officials maintained Taseer’s killer denied any knowledge of a possible broader conspiracy to target people on the basis of the blasphemy controversy.

He pleaded ignorance about the killing of Bhatti and insisted that he had killed the former governor for alleged blasphemy.

Sources said certain clues had been found during the investigations which led the probe team to suspect a connection. However, this was not officially verified.

Police also rounded up more suspects including a cleric of a mosque for questioning. Police officials said thirty suspects and certain witnesses were being questioned. The driver of the slain minister was also interrogated.

“His own statements did not match and they also contradicted the accounts given by eyewitnesses,” said a police official, adding that Gul Sher’s role had now become “suspicious”.

Four personnel of the Frontier Constabulary (FC) in the security escort of Bhatti were also included in the probe and were being quizzed. Several FC personnel have been found to be involved in terrorism-related cases in Islamabad.

Sources said the police officers responsible for the slain minister’s security were also questioned.

It was still not clear why the 15-man strong security squad had not followed the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

Phone calls record on the cell phone used by the slain minister was also being screened for clues, police officials said.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Rehman Malik rejects MNAs’ calls to resign</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127515/bhattis-assassination-blame-game-continues</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127515/bhattis-assassination-blame-game-continues#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 05 Mar 11 02:24:31 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[zia.khan]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=127515</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Interior minister says he is now number one on Taliban hit-list.]]>
			</description>
			<content:encoded>
				<![CDATA[Interior Minister Rehman Malik has rejected calls to resign from both government and opposition members of the National Assembly, saying he will do so only if it is “proved” that there was a security lapse in the assassination of Minorities Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti.


“I have already said in the cabinet that I will quit if the lapse is proved. I am ready even now to do this,” Malik told the house here on Friday, winding up a two-day debate on Bhatti’s murder.

The minister suggested the formation of a judicial commission or a parliamentary committee to investigate whether there was a security lapse.

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) MNA Jamshed Dasti had called for Malik’s immediate resignation because of his apolitical background. “Give this slot (Interior Ministry) to somebody who has to seek votes,” Dasti said.

Several members of both the Nawaz and Quaid-i-Azam  factions of the Pakistan Muslim League backed Dasti’s demand.

Malik denied that the killers were able to get to Bhatti because he wasn’t provided adequate security.

He said following threats against the minister, he was given an increased level of protection called “box security”. Bhatti himself selected four Christian constables from Islamabad Police to be in his security detail.

On the president’s directive, 15 or 16 Elite Force personnel were deployed for his security, he said.

Malik told the house that Bhatti used to move without security from his official residence to the nearby house where his mother lived.

“He feared his enemies may target him at his residence so he used to leave for his mother’s house at night,” he said.

He said Bhatti may still be alive if he had kept his guards with him at all times. He said the minister was given a second-hand bullet-proof car but he returned it and sought a new one.

“The government was in the process of purchasing it for him,” the minister said, contradicting what Bhatti himself said in one of his last interviews with the media before the assassination.

Taliban targets

The minister added that he himself was now at the top of a list of Taliban targets. “You may not find me here again. I am under threat,” he added.

PPP MNAs Sherry Rehman, another supporter of reforms to the blasphemy laws, and Fauzia Wahab, the party’s former information secretary, were at number two and three on the list, respectively, the minister said.

During the two-day debate, the National Assembly heard emotionally charged speeches by members from all parties but it could not adopt a formal resolution condemning the murder of the country’s only Christian federal minister, allegedly by Taliban associated with al Qaeda and based in Punjab. Instead, the assembly held two minutes of silence to mourn Bhatti’s passing.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Angered, mourners lay Bhatti to rest</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127568/black-flags-fly-in-shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-village</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127568/black-flags-fly-in-shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-village#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Sat, 05 Mar 11 02:23:44 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[reuters]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=127568</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[Bhatti's body was taken to the Khushpur area of Faisalabad via helicopter.]]>
			</description>
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				<![CDATA[Angry youths shouted “death for the killers” on Friday ahead of the burial of slain minister Shahbaz Bhatti on Friday.


The church service for the country’s only Christian federal minister, who was assassinated by the Taliban, was held in the federal capital and was attended by Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani.

“I consider this day as a black day,” Gilani said in the church. “All the minorities have lost a great leader. I assure you, we will try our utmost to bring the culprits to justice.”

Interior Minister Rehman Malik distanced himself from the slain politician, telling media Bhatti was himself to blame for his death.

“I think it was his mistake,” Rehman Malik said, adding that Bhatti wanted to keep a low profile. “It was his own decision.”

President Asif Ali Zardari did not attend the service, which was also attended by many other political figures and diplomats.

After the service, the body was transported in a helicopter to his native village for burial.

In a sign of mourning, black flags fluttered atop houses in Khushpur, Bhatti’s mainly Christian home village. Around 2,000 men, women and children thronged the village cemetery for burial.

“These terrorists must be hanged publicly to stop them from committing such brutal crimes,” Hina Gill, a member of the Christian Minority Alliance said. “These terrorists are wearing the mask of religion to defame religion.”

“Bhatti, your blood will bring revolution,” some mourners shouted as his body was taken to the burial site in an ambulance.

Christians were not alone in mourning Bhatti.

“Shahbaz Bhatti has tried hard to promote interfaith harmony but those who want to destabilise Pakistan have killed him,” said Badruddin Chaudhry, a Muslim attending the funeral.

Only dignitaries were allowed to enter the Church amid tight security.

Scores of members of the Christian community, who had come to attend the memorial service, stayed outside the Church after they were not allowed to enter the premises. Later, they staged a protest and subsequently a sit-in on the Faisal Avenue.

Diplomats from everal countries also participated in the prayers.

With additional reporting from our correspondent

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Sindh condemns Shahbaz Bhatti’s assassination</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127798/sindh-condemns-shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-assassination</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127798/sindh-condemns-shahbaz-bhatti%e2%80%99s-assassination#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 04 Mar 11 19:11:59 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[Hafeez Tunio]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Sindh]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=127798</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[‘Bhatti told the govt about threats but he was still not given protection’.]]>
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				<![CDATA[The Sindh Assembly unanimously passed a joint resolution on Friday to condemn the assassination of Federal Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti. Paying tribute to his services, lawmakers termed the incident a major conspiracy to defame Pakistan.


Bhatti’s funeral ceremony took place at Islamabad’s Fatima Church on Friday.

The resolution was jointly moved by Minister for Power Shazia Marri, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) minorities MPA Pitanbar Sewani, Pakistan Muslim League-Functional’s (PML-F) Nusrat Saher Abbasi and Khwaja Izharul Hassan of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

“The assembly strongly condemns the assassination of Federal Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, a man of courage and a symbol of equality, [he was] committed to the ideals of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, [we] recognise his assassination as yet another attack on the peace and progress of Pakistan; and [we] express [our] deepest condolences to the bereaved family and to the people of Pakistan,” the resolution read.

Marri said that minorities had been playing a major role in the development of the country and their services in health and education sectors must be applauded. “This joint resolution is a message for the forces that we are all united against any kind of discrimination.”

Meanwhile, Sewani said that terrorism would not deter them from safeguarding the rights of minorities. “We are sons of the soil and we will not migrate anywhere. We will defeat the terrorists,” he said.

Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid’s Shaharyar Mahar said there was a dire need to investigate different aspects of the incident.

“Newspapers had run stories in January that there were serious threats to ministers, but despite Mr Bhatti’s repeated requests, the government did not provide him a bullet-proof vehicle,” he said. Deputy Speaker Shahla Raza interrupted him and asked him not to criticise the government but talk on the resolution. But Mahar, continued, “People should know what exactly happened.”

Dr Dayaram Esrani, the provincial minister for wildlife, said that terrorists were working against the “true spirit” of Islam, which teaches co-existence and tolerance. He is the only Hindu lawmaker in Pakistan who had been given an election ticket for a general seat. “I received 50,000 votes and 97 per cent of my voters were Muslim,” he told the house.

Minister for Local Government Agha Siraj Durrani said that Shahbaz Bhatti was a human-rights activist. During President Zardari’s recent visit to the United States, Bhatti was with him and they both held meetings with US President Obama.

Honour crime

Earlier on the point of order, PPP MPA Aisha Khoso raised the issue of a girl in Jacobabad whose nose was cut off. “Why does the government not take any action against people who commit such crimes? This is the second girl in the area who has faced such a fate.”

Law minister Ayaz Soomro assured the MPA that the culprits had already been arrested. “I will present a report on the case during the ongoing assembly session,” he said.

Governor’s assent

Shahla Raza, who was chairing the session, announced the governor’s assent to the Benazir Bhutto University, Benazirabad (Amendment Bill) 2011.

The session was adjourned till Monday.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Clearing up the confusion</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127720/clearing-up-the-confusion</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127720/clearing-up-the-confusion#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 04 Mar 11 17:34:38 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[editorial]]>
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			<category><![CDATA[Pakistan]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=127720</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[In Pakistan today, there is no such thing as foolproof security.]]>
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				<![CDATA[So far, for every answer given about the assassination of minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti, many new questions are raised. It has now been established that he was staying with his family rather than in official parliamentary housing. We also know that he didn’t have his official security with him at the time of his murder. This raises a number of troubling questions. Did Bhatti refuse the security because he feared that his own guards would turn against him? Is the security provided by the state so ineffectual that an embattled minister felt safer staying in an undisclosed but unguarded residence rather than government housing? A newspaper report, published a few days before Bhatti’s killing, stated that he was among the few ministers not given a bullet-proof vehicle. Interior Minister Rehman Malik deflected a question about this by saying that it did not fall under his ministry’s purview. It is imperative that these questions be answered so that other threatened ministers can receive the most effective protection.

Finding the killers is vital not just so that justice can be served but also to establish how Bhatti was so easily targeted. Now is not the time for conspiracy theories, but it must be ascertained if Bhatti’s assassins simply tailed him to find his location or if they had inside help. Bhatti was so scared for his life — justifiably so as it turned out — that he kept the details of his daily routine limited to as few people as possible. His murder would be all the more tragic if it turned out that he was betrayed by one of those confidants.

At the same time, indulging in a blame game needs to be avoided. In Pakistan today, there is no such thing as foolproof security. As the Salmaan Taseer assassination showed, when so much of the country has been infected by a poisonous mindset, chronic insecurity is a fact of life for those who have the courage to speak out against retrograde forces. Until attitudes are changed, beefing up security will be a cosmetic measure that does little to tackle the true problem of extremism.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.]]>
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			<title>Culture of appeasement</title>
			<link>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127719/culture-of-appeasement</link>
			<comments>https://tribune.com.pk/story/127719/culture-of-appeasement#comments</comments>
			<pubDate>Fri, 04 Mar 11 17:34:29 +0500</pubDate>
			<dc:creator>
				<![CDATA[editorial]]>
			</dc:creator>
			<category><![CDATA[Editorial]]></category>
			<guid isPermaLink="false">https://tribune.com.pk/?p=127719</guid>
			<description>
				<![CDATA[The real enemy is India and the power that now stands behind India, the United States.]]>
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				<![CDATA[The killers of federal minister for minorities Shahbaz Bhatti must be puzzled by the way their murder, which they have claimed, is being interpreted in the media. They had put their identity on the pamphlet they threw in his car after killing the minister, and it said: (under the patronage) of al Qaeda and Tehreek-i-Taliban. They said they were from Punjab (Tehreek-i-Taliban, Punjab chapter) and were declaring their connection with the two binary organisations that are tormenting Pakistan and have brought its economy to a grinding halt.

The official interpretation of the killing of Mr Bhatti is that ‘foreign powers’ are trying to cause divisions in the country. This is what Interior Minister Rehman Malik has been saying since the murder; this is also the gloss he has been putting on most killings of the past where the Taliban had actually announced their complicity. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has taken exception to anyone calling the killers ‘Punjabi Taliban’, thinking this was name-calling under a kind of provincialism practised by the PPP. In the process, the killers are let off the hook: they are not to blame because ‘foreign powers’ are doing the killing; and they are not from any province because naming the province would be base provincialism.

Many TV channels have resorted to relying on ‘experts’ like ex-ISI chief Hamid Gul to further help this effort at appeasing the terrorists. Gul has made it fashionable among callers on many a talk show to say that the CIA is doing the killing to sow seeds of discord among the Pakistanis with the ultimate goal of getting at Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. The police and the administrative officers have caught on to this practice of putting the blame on distant lands (the US and Israel) and the ‘near enemy’ (India) to abdicate their own responsibility of identifying and catching the terrorists.

The Taliban feel insulted when our officials say that the CIA is funding them to kill innocent Pakistanis. It particularly riles the chief of the Taliban, Hakimullah Mehsud, who got himself proudly photographed with the Jordanian suicide-bomber who went across the border and succeeded in killing a group of CIA officers; he also appeared in a photograph together with Faisal Shahzad who tried to blow up Times Square in New York and with ex-ISI officer Colonel Imam as the latter was being executed. The message is: We are fighting the Americans under the guidance of al Qaeda and feel insulted by your abject appeasement.

What is the psychology of this appeasement, which began in the early 2000s after al Qaeda arrived in Pakistan and hired the Taliban warlords to spread terrorism in the country? It practically forgives the terrorists, signalling that they are not the real enemy; the real enemy is India and the power that now stands behind India, the United States. The persuasion here is: Why are you killing us; we are with you in your jihad against the US. The rest of the Pakistani mind, however, is more complex. A part of it is subject to what is called the Stockholm Syndrome, seeking empowerment by embracing the tormentor instead of confronting him. And we can’t rule out the possibility that some Pakistanis actually expect the terrorists to lead the ‘game-changer’ revolution that every leader in Pakistan is loudly praying for.

The world knows what is happening. Minorities minister Bhatti knew of these realities and, if some reports are to be believed, did not trust the security detail allotted to him, not even the Christians he had as guards, because he knew that many Pakistanis secretly approve of actions where non-Muslims or apostates are killed by those claiming to speak for Islam. The ‘peace accords’ of 2004 and 2006 with the terrorists in South and North Waziristan respectively were instances of such appeasement. The terrorists were contemptuous of this appeasement and have continued killing innocent people and destroying markets and schools with impunity, declaring their identity every time. It is no use telling them that Pakistan, too, is with them in their war against America since they focus relentlessly on killing Pakistanis and taking over Pakistan. What we need to do is open our eyes and confront them.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.]]>
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